Those We Leave Behind
by WritePassion
Summary: It was supposed to be a routine recon of the mall for Michael and Sam, while Fiona and Elsa went shopping. Now Fiona and Michael's lives hang in the balance, Elsa is missing, and Sam has to work with the police to find out who did this and get Elsa back.
1. Chapter 1

**Those We Leave Behind**

By WritePassion

The jewelry in the store window gleamed and sparkled in the sunlight as Fiona and Elsa studied the rings lined up in midnight blue velvet boxes. Each one was beautiful in and of itself, but only one would do. Fiona glanced at the brand new circle of gold awash in small diamonds on her left hand and smiled. When Michael proposed, the moment seared itself into her memory and she was reminded of it several times a day, every time she looked at the engagement ring. But when she had a job to do, she pushed it to the back of her mind. And right now, she had a job.

"Fiona, I feel like I'm being ridiculous," Elsa said beside her.

"You love him, right?" Elsa nodded. "And he loves you?"

The wrinkles on Elsa's brow softened and the creases around her eyes smoothed as she smiled. "I know he does. I just wish he'd ask me. Why should I ask him to marry me? You told me that Veronica woman asked him once, and he went into a panic."

"Things are different now," Fiona answered. "He's taken care of the obstacle he had last time." She sighed and turned to face Elsa, looking deeply into her eyes. "Elsa, I know that Sam loves you more deeply than he ever loved Veronica. You two have a richer relationship. If you ask, he will say yes. I'm sure of it."

"Why hasn't he asked me?" She was beginning to think that maybe he really didn't love her as much as she thought.

Fiona shrugged. "I'm not sure. You'd have to ask him that. Come on, let's go inside and pick out something, so that when he does say 'yes', you've got something to show that you're engaged."

"I'm still not sure about this. I think Sam and I should be ring shopping."

"He's busy with Michael, and it's high time that this happened. Trust me." She gave Elsa a warm smile. Fiona didn't want her to have to wait as long as she did for Michael.

"I promise that I'll at least look. Okay?"

"Well, that's a step in the right direction." Fiona opened the door and let Elsa go in ahead of her. The store was almost empty of customers, so the saleswoman who saw them first came forward, introduced herself, and helped the ladies by proudly displaying the rings in the case inside the store.

As the women shopped, only the other clerk in the store paid attention to three men who entered not long after Elsa and Fiona were seated in front of a low case. By the looks on their faces, they were pleased to see only four witnesses. By the time the men were finished, there would be only one, and she would be gone with them to a place where no one could get to her. The leader, Ferguson, tapped the shoulder of the man to his right. McLaren got the signal and took a few steps to the right. Sullivan moved to the left.

"Can I help you gentlemen today," the male clerk asked with a wary look as he watched the men split up.

"We're shopping for something. It's very special, but it's not something you have in stock here." He pushed past the man and approached the women, and as he took up a position behind Elsa and Fiona, he pulled a gun and pointed it at the clerk. "Move, and you don't get hurt."

The woman, her eyes wide as she saw the gun, got out of her seat with hands up and pressed against the wall next to the other clerk.

"Very good. Now, you two go with my associate to the vault and get in, and you'll be okay."

"We don't have a vault that's big enough for us to stand in," the man said.

"Well then, we'll have to work something else out." He nodded at Sullivan, and he pushed them into the back room. "Now, I want you, Miss, to get up and join them." He pointed the gun at Fiona.

She glared up at him defiantly. "What are you planning to do? Rob the place?"

"No, what I want isn't for sale. At least not in here." His eyes slid over to Elsa. "It's quite valuable." His eyes locked on Fiona. "Take her in back too."

As McLaren grasped Fiona's arm, she immediately fought out of his grip. "No trouble, lady, or you'll be sorry."

Her answer was an elbow to his face. Ferguson's answer was a gun going off. Fiona's eyes widened, her hand instinctively reached for where the bullet pierced her lower chest, and she staggered against the case. It rattled, and then she slid down to the floor still stunned by the shot. Elsa screamed when it happened, and Ferguson reached around and clamped a hand over her mouth.

"Shut up! If you weren't so valuable to me right now, I'd shoot you too! Boys, are you ready? Let's get out of here before the cops show up!"

Two shots rang out in the back, and Sullivan appeared with a blank look on his face. "Ready to go, boss."

"Ready." McLaren replied as he looked down at Fiona. "Should I finish it?"

"With a wound like that, she won't have long. Come on, we've got work to do." In one swift movement, he pulled Elsa from her seat and turned her away from the mess his team left on the floor. "Now, Elsa, you listen to me, obey, and you live. If not, I'll take out your boyfriend first so you can watch him die, and then you're next."

"Who are you?" Elsa was so scared, but she managed to calm herself enough to speak. "What do you want?"

"Let's start with twenty million dollars and we'll go from there," Ferguson replied with a leer. Then his look sobered, and he said, "Think about what I said as you and I leave the store and walk through the galleria. If you so much as squeak, it's all over."

If this man intended to kill Sam first, he obviously knew that Sam and Michael were somewhere in the mall. The men and women had split up, the men to do some recon for a job, and the women to shop. Sam said it was just a routine thing, and he and Michael could handle it alone. If she saw them, what would happen?

"Did you hear me?"

"Y-yes, I did." Elsa gave Fiona's prostrate form one last look. From where she stood, she couldn't tell if she was still breathing. There was so much blood! Her eyes stung with tears as she turned away and addressed the stranger. "I don't like this, but I'll go with you."

"Good. Just act naturally, like I'm your boyfriend." He put an arm around her, smiled, and tucked his gun under a jacket and held it between their bodies in such a way that he could shoot her if necessary. "Let's go."

Ferguson and Elsa walked out of the jewelry store and headed for the exit. His cohorts fanned out, their eyes searching for Sam. Sullivan hesitated a step.

"I see him, boss."

"Okay, keep an eye on him. If he looks like he's on to us or approaches, you know what to do."

Sullivan nodded and kept watching Sam, who stood on the second floor near the railing, scanning the mall. His eyes fixed on the small group, and his mouth opened. He wore sunglasses so his eyes were shielded, but Elsa had no doubt his eyes showed alarm. He got on his phone and moved away from the railing, but he didn't appear to be pursuing them.

"Let's go, let's go," Ferguson muttered and quickened the pace. He kept his focus on the exit while his men watched for security and Sam. The group reached the parking lot and the getaway car, and Ferguson shoved Elsa into the back seat.

She raised a hand to fight him, but he grabbed her wrist, slapped a handcuff on it, and secured it to the other wrist. He didn't say a word, but his eyes warned her that any more moves like that would cause her serious bodily harm. Elsa whimpered and shrunk into the seat.

"That's a good girl," Ferguson said with a smile that communicated anything but happiness. He opened the driver's side door and got in. Sullivan got in back with Elsa, and McLaren took the front passenger seat.

As Ferguson pulled the car out of the parking space, Elsa saw Michael running toward the car with his gun drawn. She shifted herself so she could lower the window with her elbow on the switch, just enough to yell at him and Sam closing in with his weapon ready.

"Back off! Back off or they'll kill you!"

Sullivan slipped a handkerchief over her mouth and tied it, cutting off her ability to call out to them or scream loud enough for anyone to hear. "Shut up, woman! That was really stupid."

Michael raised his gun to shoot at the driver, but he missed when the angle changed and the bullet struck the door frame.

"Mike, they've got Elsa! Be careful!"

The car's back window shattered with a gunshot fired at them. Now the two had a clear view of the retreating men, and at their speed, in moments it would be too late. Sam raised his gun, aimed carefully, and fired just before the car went out of range. The man in the front passenger seat slumped over. The man in back turned, aimed, and fired. Sam dove behind the fender of a car and heard the bullet strike it. Tires squealed, and they were gone.

Sam took a moment to catch his breath and stood, his eyes flitting around with caution. The kidnappers were gone. Alarmed people milled around, and he heard their voices. "Mike?" His friend didn't answer. "Mike!" His eyes locked on a figure lying on the asphalt, and he hurried to his side. "Oh no, Mike! Come on, hang in there, Mikey." He pressed one hand to the stomach wound while he dialed 911 with the other.

It would be a few minutes before help arrived. A cop pulled up. "Okay, people, back off. Let's give them some room here." He stared down at the prone man and the one who knelt beside him attending to the wound. "Did anyone call this in?"

"Yeah, there's an ambulance on the way," Sam answered as he continued to put pressure on the wound.

"Officer, there was a woman shot at the jewelry store in the galleria!"

"Alright, calm down, ma'am." He got on his radio. "Unit 96, we've got a shooting in the mall parking lot and another in the jewelry store."

"Ten-four. More units and another ambulance are on the way."

"Ten-four." The officer worked on keeping people back while Sam did what little he could with no resources.

"Do you have any medical supplies in your trunk," Sam asked.

"Yes, I do." He turned back to the ever increasing crowd. "I need you all to get back and stay back. Now!" When it seemed that the crowd would heed his instruction, he hurried to his cruiser and returned with the bag. He dropped it next to Michael's legs. Sam was again on his knees, and a woman flanked Michael's other side. "Lady, what are you doing?"

"I'm a nurse," she snapped back. "I'm helping."

"Okay." He went back to watching the crowd with two more officers who arrived on the scene.

Sirens increased in volume as Sam and the woman took care of Michael. By the time the ambulance arrived, there was very little for the paramedics to do but stabilize him and pack him up for the trip to the hospital. They thanked Sam and the nurse as they put him into the ambulance.

"I'll go with you," she said. "I walked over here on my break, so I don't have to worry about my car or anything."

"Thanks, for everything, Miss..." Sam glanced down and for the first time noted that she wore rose colored scrubs and a hospital ID badge. "Karen. Thanks."

"You're welcome." She smiled and patted his arm. "We'll take good care of him."

The doors closed, the siren screamed, and the ambulance took off for the hospital. Thank God it was only a few blocks away. The second ambulance left the scene right behind the first. Sam needed to find Fiona and regroup, and wait for the kidnappers to call with their ransom demands. It angered Sam that they couldn't have just gone after them, but the Charger was in a different part of the parking lot, and it was obvious that the men who took Elsa were willing to kill anyone who stood in their way.

"Sir?"

"Yeah?"

"I need to ask you some questions."

Sam let out a deep sigh. His instincts were to find Fi, get the car, and go to the hospital. He didn't have time to answer questions, and he said so. "Look, I've gotta find Mike's fiancee. She's around the mall somewhere."

"In a minute. Just answer my questions and you can look for your friend's fiancee."

"Fine." Sam stood facing the mall, bloodied hands on hips, as he gave the officer what little information he had. When the officer hesitated, he asked, "Can I go now?"

"Sure. I've got your contact information, so if we have any other questions, we'll let you know."

"Thanks." Sam pushed through the crowd and headed for the mall. Unsure of where to look, he searched the ground floor, since Elsa and the men were on that level when he saw them. He neared the jewelry store and saw police tape and more cops. Suddenly, it hit him. Someone reported a woman shot in the jewelry store. He'd been too busy attending Michael to notice at the time. It had to have been Fi. He pressed as closely as he could, but hands held him back.

"Sir, you can't go in there."

"Who was the woman that they took to the hospital?"

"I can't tell you that, Sir. I'm sorry."

Sam caught sight of Fiona's bag in the hands of a detective. He pointed toward him and said, "Officer, I need to talk to that man right now. I have some information on this case."

The officer eyed him, noticed the blood on Sam's hands, and instantly became suspicious. His hand rested on his firearm. The movement wasn't missed by Sam.

"It's okay. I was just trying to keep my friend from dying in the parking lot before the ambulance came! My name is Sam Axe, my friend Michael Westen was taken to the hospital. I need to know if Fiona Glananne was the woman taken to the hospital. She's his fiancee." He paused to take a breath and try to calm his hammering heart. "And the woman who was kidnapped is my fiancee, Elsa."

That got the cop's attention. He raised a hand and signaled to the detective. The detective gave the bag to another suit and walked over to them.

"What's up?"

"This guy knows something about this case. Either he's one of the suspects, or he's the victim's beau."

"I'm Detective Casey. What's your name, Mister?"

"Sam Axe. I'm Elsa Winchester's fiance." He wasn't really, not yet, but if it would get them to move while things were still hot, he'd say or do anything to get her back home safe.

"Some men kidnapped her, shot my friend Mike, and I don't know where his fiancee Fiona is. I'm guessing she was the other one shot."

"Come with me, Mr. Axe. I'll take you down to the station where you can clean up and we can talk about what you know."

Sam didn't like the way this guy was treating him, like he wasn't sure yet if Sam was one of the good guys or not. It irritated him; valuable time was being wasted while the detectives barked up the wrong tree. He ducked under the tape and went with the detective and his partner, both flanking him as if prepared to cuff him if necessary. Sam knew how this worked. It didn't mean he had to like it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

When he arrived at the station, Sam washed his hands and arms and tried to clean the blood from his shirt, but there was only so much he could do. He still looked like he'd been in a war. The short time in the restroom allowed him a chance to think about everything that happened in the previous hour. Elsa was gone, and he had no idea where to begin to look for her. Without Mike and Fi to assist him, he was lost in a big city with too many places to hide. Jesse would help. He knew that, and it made him feel a little better. A ton of weight sat on Sam's shoulders with his friends and his lover in jeopardy, and now he would have to contend with the cops who, for some reason, looked at him as a suspect. No, a person of interest, which was a really nice way of saying suspect, minus the liability. Meanwhile, Elsa became more difficult to find as time passed.

He sat in a small interview room with Det. Casey. He suspected the guy's partner, and God only knew who else, stood behind the one way glass. If he'd been in the mood, Sam would have been cocky and waved at them, but at the moment, he was focused on only one thing: finishing the interview so he could go in search of Elsa.

"Mr. Axe, what were you and your friend Mr. Westen doing at the mall, armed?"

"Is that really relevant? My fiancee's been kidnapped, and two of my friends are in the hospital. I think that's a lot more important." Sam replied, trying to keep his voice tempered and cool, when he really wanted to yell at the detectives and get them to focus on the real problem.

"I believe it's quite relevant. Were you expecting trouble? Perhaps you knew that someone knew you would be there with your girlfriends, and that by splitting up from them, you made the kidnapper's job easier."

"What are you saying, that you think I had something to do with my fiancee's kidnapping? Are you insane?"

"She is quite wealthy, and..."

Sam shot out of his chair, pressed his fists into the table surface, and leaned into the detective's space. "The money means far less to me than Elsa. I love her!" He pointed a finger, stopping within inches of Casey's face. "I would give my life for Elsa, so don't you dare insinuate that I would do anything to hurt her. Otherwise, you'll be sorry."

"Are you threatening me, Mr. Axe?" Casey remained cool, but he could see how deeply this event affected the man. Behind the steel in his eyes, Sam Axe was hurting.

"Take it however you want." Sam dropped into the chair with a deep sigh and swallowed, working hard to maintain his composure. He planted his elbows on the edge of the table and buried his face in his hands to try to shut out everything for a few moments and cool down.

"Judging from what the other witnesses have told us, it was a pretty well organized affair. I believe they had someone helping them, or following Ms. Winchester so they knew when and where to take her. I find it hard to believe that you work with an agent and yet you were not aware that someone could have been tailing you."

"I don't look in my rearview for a tail everywhere I go. We had no reason to believe that anyone would be following us." Sam raised his head and looked at Casey with a spark of a memory coming to mind. "This morning, Elsa and I rode to the mall together. Elsa was driving, and my friends Mike and Fi took his car. We went to the hotel first. What if someone put a tracker on the car, either at the house or the hotel? Then they'd know where she went."

"We'll check out the cars." Casey made a note on a pad of paper. "That kind of brings me back to my original question: why were you and Mr. Westen at the mall, and armed?"

"I can't discuss that." He leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms in front of himself to hide the stains on his shirt. They distracted him. Sam wished he could go home and change, but then he would have to walk into that big house and be alone. Staff didn't count when all he wanted was Elsa safe and at home with him.

"Why are you trying to withhold what might be pertinent information to this case?" Det. Casey came around the table and got into his face, but Sam would not be intimidated.

His eyes locked onto Casey. "If you want to know what I was doing there, you can ask the CIA."

"You don't work for the CIA, Axe."

"Oh, like I'm gonna advertise that with an ID or something? You guys have no clue." Officially, he wasn't part of the CIA, but with his assisting Michael and the agency trying to put the lid on Anson and whoever ultimately killed him, he was unofficially a freelancer. He even got a bit of financial compensation for the last mission that he undertook with Michael, Fiona, and Jesse. Jesse. If only he could call him. At the very least, he could go to the hospital and keep tabs on Mike and Fi. Or he could run some interference and get these cops off his back.

"If you don't cooperate, you might need a lawyer."

It took all of Sam's control to not laugh at the lame ploy. "I have a permit to carry. My friend has a permit to carry. We were perfectly within our rights to be there. You should be more concerned with putting out a BOLO on that plate, if you got one."

"We do have a bulletin out there, and so far, none of our units have seen it. Until the kidnappers contact you or anyone else with their demands, we don't have anything to work with."

"Are you prepared to do a trace if they call?"

Casey sat on the corner of the table and crossed his arms. "We have a team at your girlfriend's hotel and her son's house. I think we've got all the bases covered."

"Unless the kidnappers try the house. There's nobody home right now except for the housekeeper." His frustration showed in the grim set to his lips. "They could have already called and we missed the opportunity to track them!"

"Don't worry, Mr. Axe. We'll get the house covered as well." Casey stood up and beckoned him with his hand. "As a matter of fact, we can do that right now. I take it you have a key?"

"Yes, I do. I live there with Elsa."

Casey let out a breath. He realized that if the kidnappers knew that fact, they could very well have missed the call. "Let's get over there, fast." He got on his phone on the way out of the station. "Rob, we need another tracer at the victim's house. Her fiance and I are on the way there right now." He drove, his partner Detective Groves rode shotgun, and Sam rode in the back. When they arrived, a panel van sat in the circular drive.

"Is that the tracer team," Sam asked as he tried to get a good look through the open doors.

"Don't worry about that, just open the door so we can get set up."

Sam fished out the key, turned the lock, and opened the door. Two men hustled past him and found a landline phone to hook up their equipment. Sam checked another phone for messages, but there were none.

"Nothing so far."

"They'll call." Casey and Groves sat on opposite ends of the couch facing Sam.

He sat in a swivel chair near the large windows that faced the swimming pool and back yard. He crossed his legs and with one foot swung the chair back and forth in a lazy gesture that dissipated some of his nervous energy. His eyes focused again on the stains on his shirt. He really couldn't stand to look at them anymore. His hands gripped the sides of the chair and he pushed himself up to stand.

"I'm going to go change my shirt, if you don't mind."

"Go right ahead, Mr. Axe. You don't mind if we look around, do you?"

"Knock yourselves out. It's not like you'll find anything here." Sam was careful about keeping private things locked up. With a snoopy housekeeper, it became second nature.

He walked down the hall to the bedroom and noted that the house seemed unusually quiet. He didn't see Colleen downstairs, and at this time of day, she often took a break to watch a couple of her favorite soaps on television. She could always be found in the solarium with her shoes off, feet tucked up underneath her, with a Dr. Pepper and a bag of munchies parked on the end table. Today, he didn't hear the television. As he changed out of his shirt and undershirt, he tried to think if she had asked for the day off. When he and Elsa left that morning, Colleen said she was making up something really special for tonight. So she should have been there.

Sam hurried downstairs as he buttoned up his shirt. The two detectives were scattered about the house with their team searching every room. Sam went to the kitchen, hoping to find Colleen there or at least a note to say where she was and when she would be back. He found nothing. A cell phone lay on the counter. It wasn't his, and it wasn't Elsa's. He took care in picking it up and checked through it to try to figure out who it belonged to.

"What'd you find, Axe?" Casey watched Sam for any sign of guilt at being caught, but he was disappointed.

"Cell phone. At first I thought maybe one of your people left it in here, but I think it's Colleen's."

"Colleen?"

"Yes, she's the housekeeper. She's usually around in the solarium this time of day watching the TV, but she seems to have flown the coop."

"Other than my team and you, we haven't found anyone in the house."

Sam's eyes locked on Casey as a cold, prickly sensation crawled down into his stomach. Without a word, he dropped the phone on the counter and hurried toward the French doors that opened to the pool area.

"Axe, what are you doing?" Casey followed.

Sam rushed to the storage shed where the pool cleaning supplies and landscaping tools were kept. He found the door unlocked, and that lousy feeling in his gut only worsened. He flung the door open, expecting to find the housekeeper in a pool of blood, but it was empty. No one was inside: he discovered this after checking every nook and cranny where someone could hide.

"She's not here."

"Did you think she would be?"

Sam shook his head. "I don't know. I just know she's not on the couch where she usually is at this time of day." He turned and glared at Casey. "And I want to know why."

Casey's hard look softened as he realized the truth, that Sam Axe was just a man concerned for the welfare of his fiancee. "We'd like to know that, too. Come on, let's go inside and talk about the housekeeper's schedule, and we'll take a look at that phone. We can get a warrant to pull the records on it and find out who she called."

"By then this could be all over."

"Hopefully with a good resolution." Casey said with a smile of empathy. He dropped a light hand on Sam's back and steered him toward the house. "Just try to keep thinking positively."

"Casey, don't try to BS me. I know how these hostage situations work. Every hour that goes by, the lower our chances of getting Elsa back safely." He ran a nervous hand through his hair as he sat in the chair in the living room. "The longer they take to call, the less likely this is about money and more about revenge."

"Revenge? Why would anyone want to commit revenge against you?"

Sam turned his chair and stared at Casey. "If you only knew!" He turned away again and let his eyes go out of focus as they locked onto the back yard. "Is anyone interviewing the neighbors? Maybe someone saw Colleen leave."

"A couple of my team members are on that. Relax, we know what we're doing." Casey leaned forward on the couch and rested his elbows on his knees, studying the tortured man who sat across from him. Casey had been on the force for a long time, getting close to retirement, and he'd seen a lot of distraught husbands, wives, relatives, and friends, but Sam Axe was unique. His anxiety came from a place that most victims' families never knew, because he understood the mechanics of a snatching, the psychology, the tactics, and the procedures. He had so much more knowledge than the average citizen, but knowing those things wasn't necessarily a good thing. Casey expected that he would be a hard one to work with, because he would press them and he'd tell them what to do. No half measures.

The front door opened, and Sam brought his head up from where it rested in his hand to focus on the young woman who entered. She wore a badge at her waist. She smiled at him and moved around the couch to report to Casey.

"Detective Logan, Sir. We interviewed the homeowners on the block, but only one person saw the housekeeper leave about eight this morning."

"Eight o'clock? Are you sure?" Sam got out of his chair and confronted her. "Elsa and I were still here. We left shortly after eight, though, to go to the hotel. We had breakfast there and she had a quick meeting, and then we met Mike and Fi at the mall."

"So the housekeeper didn't cook for you this morning?"

"No. That happens a lot. Elsa grabs something at the hotel before work, and if I'm not meeting my friends at Carlito's, I'll eat with her." He paused in thought. "Yeah, today we left a little after eight, because I remember I teased her that we were running late and she'd have to grab some drive thru on the way instead of having a real breakfast."

"Where was Colleen when you left?"

"I didn't really pay attention. I think she was... in the kitchen." His head fell back and he pinched his eyes shut. "She was probably calling her kidnapping buddies to tell them we were leaving. She knows Elsa's schedule, but she didn't know about the change in going to the mall this morning."

"The kidnappers were on her tail or tracking her, then."

"Yeah." Sam let out a deep breath. "That still doesn't help us find her. We just know how they knew where to pick her up."

"They'll call soon."

Sam looked at Casey as if he didn't believe him. Then the phone rang.

Casey looked down at the screen and saw that the number was blocked. "You're on, Mr. Axe. You know how to deal with this, don't you?"

Sam nodded as he reached for the phone. "Don't worry, I'll keep them talking as long as I can."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

His heart was racing when he answered the phone. Despite all the years of experience, he still couldn't stop the adrenaline from affecting him, not when the life of the woman he loved was at stake. "Hello?"

"Hello, is this Sam Axe?"

"Yes, it is," he replied in a voice so calm, he amazed himself. "Who is this?"

"You don't need to know my name. What you need to know is that I have your dear Elsa here with me, and if you want to see her alive again, you'll meet my demands."

"Why are you doing this?"

"It doesn't matter. Just give me what I want or she dies. We know what we're doing, and we don't play games."

Sam listened to the man's tone and noted an accent. It sounded Irish to him. "Do you know Fiona Glenanne?"

"No, I don't! I want twenty million dollars in non-sequential serial numbers, all in one hundred dollar bills. It should be delivered to the Dinner Key Marina by Friday noon. There will be a red boat tied up in slip 20. I want you to come alone, with the money in a duffel bag, and drop it into the stern. After you walk away, I will call you with Elsa's location."

"You expect me to hand off the money and you tell me where Elsa is, but I won't know she's alive or not until I get there and you're long gone. How dumb do you think I am?"

"You don't have a choice, Mr. Axe."

"I want to know where she is the second I drop off the cash, and I'm not leaving that boat until the police find her safe and sound. You got me?"

"I understand completely. We'll play this fair and square, I assure you."

"Good. So before I do anything, I want proof of life. For every day you hold her, I want a picture or a video of her with the day's paper as proof of when you took it."

The kidnapper laughed. "You have a lot of nerve, don't you, Mr. Axe? It makes sense. Elsa told me you were a SEAL. Just don't try anything to rescue her prematurely, or there'll be nothing to rescue."

"What do you mean by that?" The hair on the back of Sam's neck tingled. He could imagine a hundred different ways to booby trap a hideout where they would keep Elsa. A good portion of them were risky for the kidnap victim as well as anyone who dared to break in to save her.

"She's in a safe place, but if you manage to find her and try to get her out, well, let's just say you'll both be spending eternity together. So, do we have a deal? Friday noon, Dinner Key Marina, slip 20, twenty million dollars."

"I'll have the money for you."

"Good. I hope your friends had fun trying to trace this call."

"He hung up. We almost had it!" The cop monitoring the trace cursed under his breath.

"How close do you think we got," Det. Groves asked.

"A few blocks maybe." He shrugged. "I really don't know for sure."

Sam let out a deep breath, juggled the phone in his hand, and stared out the window. Casey clapped a hand on his shoulder.

"It's okay, Sam. You did a good job."

"I was trying to gauge how much I could push him, get him just angry enough to come back with something smart or to justify what he's doing, but he was too wise to that." He nodded. "He's done this before. And he had an Irish accent. I'm thinking IRA."

"What would an IRA member want with your girlfriend? And besides, aren't they pretty much defunct?"

"Yeah, but maybe he's trying to fund a start up, maybe here in the States. You know how fragile things are from a political standpoint in this country. Look at all the whack jobs who are mowing innocent people down. Little acts of terrorism like that, target the right people, and you cause division and further weaken our country." He turned away from the window, set the phone in its cradle, and went to the kitchen.

"What are you doing?"

"It's time for a beer. Sometimes I think better with one in my hand. Want... never mind, you're on the clock." He reached into the refrigerator and pulled one out for himself. "You want anything? I suppose while you're all here, you can have free rein of the fridge and the pantry."

"Thanks. Some of my team might want something to drink."

"Go for it." He twisted off the top and dropped the cap into the garbage as he walked back to the living room and approached the suit with the laptop poring over the data from the trace. "So, where did the trace end?"

"Right here," the man responded and pointed to a map. Sam looked over his shoulder. "It's an area with a lot of warehouses, but they're all pretty active. I think someone with a hostage would be pretty obvious there. But a few blocks to the west, we're talking the edge of the city. There are some places out there where a body could hole up for awhile and not be disturbed."

"Detective Casey? Shall we?"

"Oh no, no way are you going along, Axe!"

"Why not? I know what I'm doing. I have the expertise to handle a situation like this."

Casey was about to reply, but the phone rang again. He stepped back and let Sam pick it up. "Hello?"

"Mr. Axe, it's me again. Do you have an e-mail address that I can use to send you a video?"

"Yes, I do." He gave the man his own address.

"Fantastic. You'll have the first video within a few minutes." He hung up.

"You should have tried to keep him on the line." The cop with the computer said.

"He wasn't in the mood to be chatty." Sam dropped the phone into the base, set his beer on the coffee table, and said, "I'll be right back."

Sam returned a few minutes later with his laptop and logged into his e-mail account. A message with an attachment waited. The return e-mail address was blocked, so he had no way to trace it to the kidnapper. When he double clicked on the attachment, a window opened with a freeze frame of Elsa's face on it. He set the computer on the coffee table so the cops could watch it with him. He hit the play button just as the doorbell rang.

"Hang on a second, Sam." Casey jerked his head toward the door, and the female cop went to answer it.

"Hey, woah, what's going on here?"

Sam's head came up and his eyes locked with Casey's questioning expression. "Jesse! Come on in!" To Casey, he said, "He's a friend. And he can help."

"Sam, my man, what's up?" Jesse was smiling, but behind it was a question. His head moved, taking in all the people in the room. "What's going on?"

"Did you hear about Mike and Fi?"

"No. I tried to call Mike this morning, but he didn't pick up." Jesse sat next to Sam on the couch and stared at the computer screen. "That's Elsa." He turned and fixed his attention on Sam. "What's this all about?"

Sam quickly got Jesse up to speed on what was happening. "So this video is the first proof of life display that I asked for. Let's see what she says." He hit the play button.

On the screen, Elsa looked well but her face was creased with worry and fear. Her hands were tied behind her back, and she struggled to find a comfortable position. "Sam, it's me, Elsa. They shot Fiona and I think she's dead. They took me and they want twenty million dollars. You know I have that. Work with Evan to get it out of the bank and do what they say. I love you, Baby. I want to see you again." Her breath came out ragged as fear gripped her. "Please don't try to find me. They'll blow up the factory. They've got..."

The window went black, then the voice of the caller came over the speaker. "Mr. Axe, if you do something for me, I'll let you talk to Elsa the next time that we have a proof of life session. I want you to provide me with the location of Fiona Glenanne and Michael Westen. I know they must be in a hospital somewhere in Miami, if they survived. If they didn't, ah well, let me know where they are anyway. I have friends who are interested in them both." The video returned to Elsa crying softly then blacked out completely.

"This guy is a real piece of work, Sam," Jesse said. "Do you have any idea who he could be?"

"Pretty obvious he's Irish. I think we need to get a rundown on every Irish national who's crossed Fi's path." Sam closed the e-mail program and opened a browser to a search site that required a password to get in.

"You think this is a revenge thing, trying to get to Fi through you and Elsa?"

"I don't know. I just know I hate it." He picked up the computer and his beer, and said, "I'm going to Elsa's study because what I'm about to go into is classified information. You don't have a problem with that, do you, Casey?"

"No. Just share with me what you can, okay, Sam?"

"Sure." He gave Casey a thin smile. "Jesse? You wanna come with?"

"You betcha!"

The two spent the rest of the day poring over CIA and other government agency records that they both had access to in order to search for the kidnapper. They worked long after lunch time and ignored the growling of their stomachs. Time could not be wasted on a trivial thing such as eating. Who knew if the kidnappers were providing Elsa with food and water. She looked to be healthy on the video, but it was still early. In another two days, if she was neglected... Sam didn't want to think about that. That's how long they had to put the ransom together; hopefully it was enough time to find her. It also allowed the kidnappers time to kill her and play a trick or two so Sam wouldn't know he was giving up a ransom for a dead body.

A knock disturbed them as the two read the dossier on the screen. Det. Logan poked her head in through the slightly opened door. "Hey, guys? You should probably grab a bite to eat. I brought you something."

"Oh, just leave it on the coffee table over there," Sam replied absently as he concentrated on the intel. "We're still into classified stuff, so I don't want you coming over here."

"Any luck?"

"We're narrowing down the list," Jesse said as he pointed at something on the screen. Sam nodded. "Looks like we've got it down to about a half dozen guys."

"Can you print some pictures of them? Then we could go back to the mall and ask the witnesses if they recognize any of them."

Sam glanced up at her. "Did anything come out of that BOLO?"

"The state police found the car dumped in the Everglades. It had a flat tire and a bad spare."

"There weren't any bodies laying around, like the driver of whatever car they stole to keep running?"

"No, Sir. So you're thinking they took another hostage."

Sam nodded. "Exactly. Not too smart, but maybe Elsa somehow convinced them to keep him or her alive. She can be very persuasive when she needs to be." He smiled briefly, then turned serious as he got back to work. "Tell Casey we'll be out in a little while with some info."

He and Jesse found Casey and his team sitting at the dining room table feasting on lasagna that Colleen made and froze for a quick dinner. The detectives looked up at the two with guilty expressions, but they relaxed when Sam was more intent on speaking with Casey. Jesse handed him a sheet of paper.

"These are your potential kidnappers," Jesse announced.

"I think our best bet are the two guys up top, Martin Ferguson and Sean McLaren. Both of them have a score to settle with our friends, and they're both part of an organization that has shown signs of building up here in the States. We can get the CIA and the FBI involved if it's either of them."

Jesse added, "The other guys, they're American citizens, and our intel shows that they may be working with the two guys at the top of the list."

"So you think that these guys are trying to get back at your friends. It's pretty obvious that they shot to kill, or tried to, anyway, so why take the woman... Elsa? If they did what they wanted to do, it doesn't make sense."

"If they're trying to bankroll an operation, it makes perfect sense. Kill two birds with one stone, so to speak," Sam answered. "Eliminate Mike and Fi, and get enough cash to set up a small militia."

Casey read over the information the men provided him. "Okay, Rankin, Dobbs, you two check out this guy, but be careful." He handed them a copy of the intel on Martin Ferguson. "Wylie and French, you get on this McLaren guy, and report back what you find. You better grab some drinks and snacks, boys, because it's stakeout night." His four team members grumbled and rose, took their information, and left the house.

Sam and Jesse sat at vacated seats. Sam pushed the half eaten meal away from himself. "I ran a check on Colleen. I don't know why I didn't do this before, but I trusted that Elsa had a background done on her. Maybe she did, and whoever conducted the search didn't have the kind of access we did."

"What did you find, Sam?" Casey took a swig of his coffee.

"She's been working for Elsa for many many years now, and yes, she's Irish born. She came from the same town that Sean McLaren did. If we could get those phone records..."

"We should have them by the morning. I got a fast track on them."

With a look of gratefulness, Sam said, "Thanks, Casey. As much as I liked Colleen, I'm afraid we're going to see some calls made to McLaren, specifically one around eight a.m. this morning."

Det. Logan sat down next to Jesse with a cup of coffee. "Did you guys eat what I brought you?"

"Uh, no," Jesse replied. "We were kind of busy."

"Well you're not now. Come on, you guys, you know how important it is to keep up your energy."

"You're right." Sam agreed, stood, and retreated to the kitchen. He returned with a container of yogurt and a spoon. Logan gave him a scathing look, but he just held it up and said, "For a spy, this is one of the best sources of protein. Don't knock it 'til you've tried it, honey." He dug in with his spoon.

"Fine." Logan got up and went to the study to pick up the meals that they never touched, grumbling all the way about being nice and having it thrown back in her face.

"Sorry about that, Casey."

"It's okay, Sam. She's kind of new at this. Most cases she works, nobody's alive, so she doesn't have to worry about this kind of stuff."

Jesse took one of the plates she brought back and heated it in the microwave. Then he joined Casey and Sam at the dining room table and Logan cleaned up the remainders of the others' dinners. "Sam, have you heard anything from the hospital yet?"

"No. I was thinking of going over there tonight. If that's okay with you, Casey."

"You're not going without escort, Sam."

He hated the idea, but he'd forged a working relationship with the guy. He wasn't going to upset that now, because without Mike and Fi, he and Jesse needed all the help they could get. "Okay. After we're done eating, we'll go, okay, Jesse?"

"Yeah, sounds like a plan."

"We'll take the Caddy. Plenty of room for our bodyguards." The corner of his mouth tipped up as the first hint of humor lit up his face. "A squad car would be too obvious, don't you think?"

Casey laughed and shook his head. "You're something else, Sam. Do you push it like this all the time?"

"If he didn't, we'd think there was something wrong with him."

"Oh please. I'm not that bad! Mike, on the other hand." Sam pointed in the air with his spoon. "Now that guy knows how to push an envelope." Just as quickly as it came, the jovial mood flitted away. Sam dropped the utensil into his empty yogurt cup and set it on the table. "Ready any time you are, Jess."

Jesse finished up his plate of lasagna. "Dang, that was good. Too bad the woman who cooked it is crooked."

"We don't know for sure, but the chances of it are pretty good," Casey said. He stared down at the intel before him. "I'll stay here, on the off chance that Ferguson or McLaren calls again."

"If he does, have him call me at this number," Sam said as he laid a business card on the table. "I wanna be the one to talk to him."

"Sure thing, Sam. Good luck."

"Thanks." Sam and Jesse got up from the table and left through the front door. Two officers waited outside to accompany them. Only Logan and Casey were left behind.

"Logan."

"Yes, Sir?"

"Since we have some time, I want to do a little poking around, see if I can find anything valuable on either Ms. Winchester or Sam Axe. For our investigation, of course."

"Of course, Sir. Are you asking for my help?"

"No, I want you to stay down here and let me know when those two return." Casey stood and headed for the staircase. He'd gotten a good look at Sam's character that afternoon and evening, but Casey still wasn't convinced that he was everything he appeared to be. Sorting through personal effects would tell him a lot more. He didn't have a warrant, but then Sam wasn't a suspect. He just wanted to know more about the man and whether he could really be counted on to conduct this investigation in an unbiased manner. It was highly irregular to have a victim's loved one involved in a case, but so far Sam seemed to have a good grip on what to do. Casey just didn't want it to all come apart at the seams later in such a way that the perps could go free on a technicality.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

Sam parked in the visitor lot and Jesse fell into step beside him as they entered the hospital. He stopped at the front desk and asked, "Can you tell me where Fiona Glenanne and Michael Westen are?"

The woman looked into the computer records. "They're both in ICU, under police protection." She looked up and saw the two officers behind the men. "Are you friends or family?"

"Friends, but we might as well be family. We're that close," Sam replied.

"Alright, you can go up. Mr. Westen's mother is with him at the moment, I believe."

"Thanks." The four took the elevator to the fifth floor and found the ICU unit. Sam saw Maddie's frosty blonde head bent over Michael's bed, and he went into the cubicle. "Madeline," he spoke softly, afraid to startle her.

She whirled and saw Sam and Jesse, and her eyes scrunched up as her face crumbled into a sorrowful mask. Sam took her into his arms and she latched onto him. Jesse stood nearby, and she reached out to take his hand. When she seemed to calm down, Sam gently pulled away. Maddie dabbed at her eyes with a tissue and blew her nose.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Jesse. Thank you for coming, both of you. The officers told me about Elsa." Her eyes filled with tears again. "Oh Sam, I'm so sorry!"

"It's okay, Maddie. We've got some good leads, and with luck we'll be able to wrap this up before I have to deliver the ransom." He squeezed her to his side as he focused on Michael. "How is he?"

"He lost a lot of blood, but they were able to remove the bullet and fix the damage. Now he just has to lie there and heal." She sighed and laid her head against Sam's chest while he held her tighter. "The doctors have him on some heavy pain medications that are keeping him sedated. You know Michael, if he were left to his own devices, he would try to get out of here tomorrow to find Elsa."

"I know, Maddie. He's kind of crazy that way."

She let out a single bubble of laughter, then looked up at him with a gravity of the situation on her face. "Fiona almost died, Sam. They're not letting anyone see her for more than a few minutes at a time. She's supposed to have complete quiet." She sniffled. "It's not fair. She was shot in almost the same place as Nate, and yet she lived. Why is that?" She bit back the anger she wanted to spew with her words.

Sam understood how she felt. If he'd been in her shoes, he would have thought the same thing, except for the fact that Nate was hit with a 50 caliber bullet. It was difficult, if not impossible, to survive something like that. He wouldn't waste his breath telling her, because to Maddie, it wouldn't make any difference. He just held onto her for as long as she needed it. Eventually, she went back to her seat and he and Jesse took a few moments to look in on Fiona in the next cubicle over from Michael's.

Under the blue tinted fluorescent light over her bead, Fiona looked like the blood had been completely drained from her. Yet her skin was warm in her extremities, and Sam felt the pulse at her wrist when he took her hand. She was still alive, and the monitors proved it.

"Fi, I know you're a fighter. You've got the battle of your life now; don't give up." Sam squeezed her hand.

Jesse leaned close to her ear and spoke softly. "Fi, we've got a lead on who did this. You've gotta get better so you can see how this turns out, and hopefully it'll be with your attackers behind bars for the rest of their lives awaiting an execution. Hold on, Fi. Hold on." His voice cracked. "Besides, Mike needs you. Who's gonna keep him sane while he keeps looking for Nate's killer?"

"I'm sorry, you two will have to leave now," a nurse announced with a soft voice.

"Yeah. Thanks." Sam and Jesse returned to Michael's bedside and stayed for awhile, not saying a word, just sitting silently with Maddie. Sam felt his eyelids getting heavy. It had been a long day that seemed more like a week, and he was ready to sleep. Part of him didn't want to do it, in case they had a break and could go in search of Elsa's location to free her. But he knew better. If he was exhausted, he'd be of no use to anyone in a rescue operation. He wasn't in his 20s anymore, when he could stay awake for twenty-four, forty-eight or more hours and still function.

"We should go," Jesse said. Sam's weariness didn't go unnoticed. "Come on, Sam. Up and at 'em. I'll drive."

"You don't have to drive." He met Jesse's still bright eyes with his own half clouded by fatigue.

"Yes, I do. Give me the keys."

Sam grumbled, but he handed them to Jesse. They said their goodbyes to Maddie, wished Michael well, and went back to the car. Sam settled into the passenger seat, and its creamy soft leather and cushioning, along with the smooth ride, drove him off to sleep. Jesse had to wake him up when they arrived back at Elsa's house.

"You okay, or do you need help, man?"

"I'm good, Jesse. Thanks." Sam waved a silent good night and trudged upstairs to the bedroom.

He kicked off his shoes as he closed the bedroom door, took off his shirt and pants on the way to the bed, and tore back the covers before getting in. He fell asleep with the bedside lamp on, not caring or being concerned that he never turned it on to begin with. In the middle of the night he woke up, sat up straight, and ran his hands over Elsa's side of the bed like a blind man looking for his cane. Then he remembered why Elsa wasn't there, and he lay down again, silently vowing that they would find her safe and sound.

It suddenly occurred to him that through all this no one had bothered to call Evan. He needed her son to get the ball rolling on the ransom, in case they didn't locate and rescue Elsa first. It was after three in the morning, but Sam couldn't let a whole day go by before he was informed. He rolled to his side of the bed, picked up the phone, and hit the speed dial for Evan's number.

"Hey there, it's Evan. Leave a number and I'll get back to you. If you're sexy, even sooner."

Sam shook his head. When the phone beeped, he left a message. "Evan, its, uh, it's Sam. I'm sorry to be calling you so late. Somebody should have contacted you earlier, but with all the work we're doing trying to... never mind. Your Ma was kidnapped yesterday morning. The kidnappers want me to deliver twenty million dollars to them by Friday. Now, don't worry, Jesse and I are working with the police to find out who's doing this, and hopefully we can nab them and save your Ma before any money has to change hands." He let out a breath. "I'll talk to you soon, Kid. Bye."

He thought it would be hard to go back to sleep, but Sam felt like he'd been drugged. He turned off the light, settled into his pillow, and drifted off and didn't wake up until the sun was high in the sky. After he made himself presentable, he went downstairs and found Jesse and Evan sitting at the dining room table with the remnants of breakfast pushed to one side. Jesse wrote something on a pad of paper, while Evan spoke in a low tone.

"Evan, you got my message?"

Elsa's son looked up at Sam. "Yeah, I was on my way home when you called, but I didn't pick up because I needed to concentrate on my driving."

By the bloodshot look in the kid's eyes, Sam knew it had more to do with getting home without being pulled over for driving under the influence. Any other time and he would have lit into him for that, but now it wasn't appropriate. Instead, he said, "Thanks for coming over."

"No problem. I'll go to the bank this morning and get the ransom thing started." He shook his head, mindful of his hangover, but also in disbelief. "How are we gonna get twenty million dollars in one hundred dollar bills? That's, like, two hundred thousand bills!"

"Well, well, the kid can do math this early in the morning," Sam teased and sat at the table across from Evan.

"It's almost ten, Sam," Jesse remarked.

Sam glanced at his watch. "Wow, I slept late. Wish I felt like I did." He felt eyes on him and looked up to see Evan staring. "What? I'm sorry, I'm doing everything I can, Ev."

"Yeah. I know that if it wouldn't get her killed, you'd be looking under ever rock to find her." His eyes held concern. "Just be careful for yourself, Sam."

"I'm fine." He got up and went to the kitchen for some coffee. Someone made a big pot, and for that he was grateful. After a couple of cups, he would be ready to go. He returned to the table and met Casey coming in. "Morning, Detective. Anything new?"

"We looked into those men on your list, guys, and we discovered that Ferguson and McLaren have some hefty rap sheets both here in the States and Ireland."

"I could have told you that," Jesse said. "They're IRA. No big surprise."

"I called the FBI and they'll assist us in finding them."

Sam, feeling useless, asked, "What do we do in the meantime?"

"I'll get the bank working on the ransom," Evan told Casey.

"Oh, Det. Casey, this is Evan Winchester, Elsa's son. Evan, Det. Casey. He's the team leader on this case."

"Case." Evan snorted. "I never thought I'd hear my mom being called a 'case'."

"Sorry. Sometimes I get lost in the vernacular."

Evan nodded. "Want a refill, Sam?" He held up his empty cup.

"Yeah. Thanks."

As Evan filled up everybody's cups and brought Casey his first one, the detective answered Sam's question. "For now, you just have to sit tight and wait for the kidnapper to contact you again. Hopefully he'll have something this morning."

"Well, let's see." Sam logged into his e-mail. "Nothing yet." He opened up the message from the day before and hit the Reply button. "I'll just send him a friendly reminder, see what happens."

He hit the Send button, but the e-mail bounced back after a few minutes.

"He's already changed accounts. Sneaky," Jesse muttered.

Sam had a few other names for him, but he restrained himself. A new message popped into his inbox. "Here we go." He opened it and clicked on the attachment.

"Sam, honey, it's the sixteenth. They wanted me to hold this up as proof." Her hands were bound, but Elsa was able to hold the day's newspaper in front of her face. Then she lowered it, and the men saw dark circles under her makeup streaked eyes. "I hope you're working on that ransom, because I really want to get out of here. This man wants to know where Michael and Fiona are. If you tell him, he'll let me talk to you. Please, Sammy, tell him. I know it'll put your friends in danger, but I know somehow you'll..."

"Alright, that's enough." The video ended abruptly.

"Did you see that," Jesse asked.

"What?" Casey stared at the last frame. Jesse pointed to the upper left, and the detective said, "It's a chin, so what?"

"Yeah, it's a chin, but that could mean this guy isn't covering himself with a mask."

"If that's the case..."

Casey finished the thought for Sam. "He's not planning on letting her live, no matter whether or not he gets the money." He got up from his chair and walked away.

"We've gotta risk it, Jesse. We have to find Elsa and try to rescue her before Friday."

"Sam?"

"Yeah, Jess."

"Can you forward this video to my e-mail address? I have a buddy who can enhance it, and I want to see if he can pick out what this is in the background." He pointed to the area behind Elsa that was cloaked in shadow. "That looks like a piece of machinery. She mentioned in the first video about a factory. Maybe we can figure out what kind of factory that is."

Sam's head came up, and a spark lit up his eyes. "I'll do some checking to see if I can find out what's out in this part of town where the trace ended." A faint hope flared up deep inside.

"What can I do," Evan asked.

"Start praying, Kid. And stick around, because we might need you to do some recon."

Evan smiled. "Cool."

"But you're not going out alone." Sam turned a stern expression on him. "It's too dangerous. All we'd need is for them to capture you too, and then they'd have more leverage."

"I'll be careful."

Sam's gaze bored into his. "You have no idea, Kid. None at all."

"Somehow I have this feeling that I will before too long."

"You just might." Sam returned his attention to the computer screen. Casey came back and sat in his chair. "What's up?"

"Nothing. My guys are still on the stakeout at the last known residences for these two guys, and I just recalled them. We'll need them to search. " Sam shared their ideas with Casey, and after giving it some thought, he called the FBI. He set his phone down on the table after a lengthy conversation. "They want copies of your e-mails, Sam. A video specialist will analyze them for clues."

"I'm on that." He forwarded them to the e-mail address that Casey gave him. "Now, we just sit and wait, huh? I'm not too good at that. Jesse, let's go to the hospital and see Mike and Fi."

The phone rang. Jesse asked, "Think it's our guy?"

"He probably wants to know where Mike and Fi are," Sam said as he got up from the table and picked up the phone. "Hello."

"Mr. Axe, are you ready to tell me the name of the hospital where I can find Michael and Fiona?"

"Maybe."

"You will, and it better be the right one. If it isn't, when you get your girlfriend back, she may not be all in one piece. You don't want to see what happens to her for each incorrect answer you give us."

Knowing what he did from the CIA's dossier on him, this had to be Ferguson, and Sam knew from his past history that he meant what he said. "Okay, they're at Jackson Memorial, in the ICU."

"Well, that wasn't so hard, was it?" Sam heard his breathing on the phone. "Now, as I promised, here is Elsa."

"Sam?"

"Hi, Baby. Are you okay?"

"I'm scared."

"They haven't hurt you, have they?"

She let out a small, nervous sounding chuckle. "For kidnappers, they've actually been kind of... nice."

"What have they done?" Sam was afraid that they might try to get her to side with them.

"They've been feeding me. Last night it was burgers, but not too bad, from that place... oh, what is it... the one with the chubby little guy in their logo."

Sam smiled. Good girl, Elsa! "Yeah, I know that place. Is it far from where you are?"

"Um, not too far."

"Has he shown you his face?"

"Yes. They all did. They're..."

"Okay, that's enough. Nice try, Axe, trying to get her to give you clues. No more phone calls until I get what I want." The phone went dead.

The cop at the computer tried to trace the call again but got nowhere. He shook his head when Sam glanced at him. "I got nothing. It's even worse. The trace went in a different direction than last time."

"Crap. He's bouncing the signal," Sam muttered. "So we can't rely on the trace to find him. But we can be sure of this. Elsa mentioned that they got burgers from a Fast Freddie's last night."

"There are only, what, three or four of them in the Miami area," Jesse said with a growing smile. "I'll look that up, see if any of them are close to a warehouse district."

"You pinpoint that, and I'll send units out to do some recon," Casey said. "That's one smart lady you have there, Sam."

"Yeah, well, she's gotta be. They may be treating her well right now, but they have every intention of killing her when they get their money." Sam held back the tiny sense of panic that tried to rise up in him. "She said they've all shown their faces."

"That reminds me," Casey broke in. "We took those photographs to the mall and our witnesses positively id'd Ferguson, McLaren, and Sullivan as the shooters and kidnappers."

"That helps a lot. We know we're going after the right guys," Jesse said. He looked across the table at Sam, who sat not saying a word, his eyes unfocused and staring at the computer screen that still showed Elsa's terrified face. "Hey, Sam. Come on, let's go to the hospital. If Ferguson sends some people there, we wanna be around to welcome 'em, right?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. Yeah." He snapped out of it and glanced at Evan. "You stay here, Ev. Don't try to do anything. If the guy calls again, have him call my cell."

"Alright."

Jesse pulled Sam's keys from his pocket. "I'll drive again."

He'd been so tired the night before, Sam never realized that Jesse didn't return his keys. "Fine. Just let me get loaded up, and we'll go."

"Don't you think that now is a bad time to tie one on, Sam," Evan asked.

"By loaded, I mean armed." He moved to the buffet, where he checked his gun before stuffing it into his waistband, tucked under his shirt. He pulled out some clips from a drawer and dropped them into his pockets.

Evan's brow furrowed. "Does my mom know you stash ammo in there?"

"I have no idea, but I'm sure she'll be okay with it if it winds up saving her life."

Casey nodded. "We'll stick around here with Evan. Let us know how those two are doing."

"We will." Jesse got up and headed for the door with Sam.


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

When Sam and Jesse entered the ICU, they saw Maddie sitting beside Michael's bed as if she'd never left. But she wore different clothes, so Sam figured that she must have gone home at some point. She turned at the sound of their feet on the flooring and smiled.

"You came back."

"We're kind of at a point where there isn't anything else we can do," Sam said. "The FBI is involved along with the cops, and I think they just think we're in the way."

"I'm glad you were able to stop in. Michael is still out, but they say he's making progress."

"Of course. Nobody can keep Michael Westen down," Jesse said with a wide smile.

"How's Fi," Sam asked, his gaze aimed at the tiny figure in the next cubicle. She didn't look as if she'd moved since last night. It unsettled him. He'd never seen her so helpless before.

"She's hanging in there, and like Michael, she's getting better a little bit at a time. She had more internal damage than he did."

"Fi's tough. She'll make it." Jesse took a chair and sat next to Maddie.

Sam wandered into the other room and stood beside Fiona's bed. He knew that she was supposed to be left alone, but he couldn't help himself. Somewhere deep down inside her she needed to feel that somebody cared. Maddie did, but no one could blame her for spending her time with her son. Michael should have been beside Fiona, but he was unable, so Sam would take his place for the time being. He reached down to clasp her hand in both of his, and as he spoke, he caressed it. He knew she needed human touch, even if it seemed that she was way out of touch herself.

"Fi, we miss you." His throat constricted, and he swallowed hard. "I can't believe I'm saying this, but it's true, sister. As much as we harass each other, if you were gone, I'd miss that. So you need to get better. Mike needs you. When you're both out of here, and... and we get Elsa back, we'll all have to go somewhere for awhile and just get away from this craziness. How's that sound?" He took a deep breath. "I'm not sure if there is such a place, but if there is, we'll find it."

Her fingers curled around his, just a millimeter or so, but they moved. She'd been so still, he was afraid she'd never move. "Fi. Do that again."

Her grip was light like a child's, but she definitely showed more movement. He held on with one hand while the other reached up to her cheek. His fingertips skirted over her skin, and she turned into his touch. A surge of joy rushed up inside him as he smiled and the emotion burst out of him in a single sob.

"Sam? Are you okay?"

His head whipped around to the door and he saw Maddie standing in it looking at him with concern. He blinked rapidly, swallowed, and replied with a soft but heavy voice. "Fi acknowledged me, Maddie. Come here and see."

Maddie entered the room and stood on the other side of the bed. She saw the way the younger woman's fingers curled around Sam's, and that her head was turned into the palm of his other hand.

"I think it upsets her when I pull away." He removed his hand from her cheek. When the warmth of it was gone, she turned her head a little as if she sought it out again. "It's okay, Fi. I'm still here. Maddie's here, too. Now, maybe you can open those pretty eyes and let us see them?"

They waited, but she didn't respond. After awhile, Sam's shoulders slumped and he leaned against the rail. "That must be it for now. But at least we know that she knows we're here. Maybe it'll help."

"I've been afraid to spend too much time in here and get the nurses mad." Maddie suggested with a smile. "Maybe hearing your voice will help Michael, too."

"Yeah. Maybe. We'll be back, Fi. I promise." Sam went with Maddie into Michael's room and took a seat. Attempting to make small talk was torture. He wasn't used to sitting around doing nothing when a situation called for action, but when the Feds got into the mix, it was clear from what Casey didn't say that his and Jesse's help was no longer welcome. Sitting back and playing the victim just wasn't his style.

Michael stirred, and their eyes went up to his face for any sign of him waking. He moaned softly, fell silent, but after awhile he moved his arm. One hand rose in half speed up to his forehead, and he let it rest there as if the energy required to bring it up had been too much.

"Michael, honey, are you awake," Maddie asked. She caressed his other hand that lay on the blanket. His fingers twitched, then curled around hers to hold on loosely. She squeezed his hand. "I'm here, and so are Jessie and Sam. You're gonna be okay. You just have to rest."

His eyelids fluttered slightly as he fought his way to consciousness. He took a deep breath, but he stopped mid-breath and moaned again.

"Are you in a lot of pain, Mike," Sam asked. "Think we should get a nurse in here?"

"I'm not sure he's even supposed to be waking up," Maddie answered. "They might sedate him again."

"No..." The syllable was drawn out like he was drunk, but the voice came out strong. He managed to open his eyes half way, slam them closed again, and force them open once more.

"Hey, Mike, how are you feeling," Jesse asked.

"Like... got run over," Michael replied as his eyes slid closed a second time. "Too hard..."

"Then don't do it, just lay there Mikey. You're supposed to be resting and letting your body heal, so just do it." Sam encouraged him and placed a hand on his upper arm. "You're not doing yourself any favors by fighting it, and if they find out you're awake, those cranky old nurses might make us leave."

Michael smiled. "Like to... see them try."

"Oh you didn't see that one at the desk. She looks like she bench presses three hundred pounds!"

"I think that was a 'he'," Jesse added with a smirk.

Their banter brought a wider smile to Michael's face and a failed attempt at laughter. "Oh, that hurts."

"Okay, we better tone it down," Jesse suggested with a serious expression. "Don't wanna get kicked out of ICU."

"Elsa?"

Sam shook his head. "We didn't get her back yet, Mike. We're working on it, though." He hesitated, unsure of whether he should reveal who was behind it.

As if he read Sam's mind, Michael asked, "Who... did... was it Ferguson? Martin Ferguson?"

"How'd you know?" Sam gazed at Jesse.

"I didn't say anything, man!"

"Saw him," Michael said, solving the mystery. "McLaren too." He mustered up enough strength to ask, "Does this have to do with me and Fi?"

"We're not sure, but we think so. Just haven't figured out the connection yet." Sam patted his arm. "Don't worry about it, Mike. Just get well. That's what you need to do right now."

"You're disturbing my patient," the well-built nurse said, startling them. "Out, now. It's time for Mr. Westen to take a nap." The nurse held up a syringe.

"What is that," Sam asked, eyeing the clear liquid inside it.

"Nothing you need to worry about," she replied. Jesse's joke to the contrary, it was definitely a woman.

"No, I do need to worry about it. Some guys tried to kill my best friend and his fiancee, and mine's been kidnapped. I'm not gonna stand here and let you inject him with something that puts him to sleep permanently."

Michael croaked. "I don't need it."

"Yes, you do, Mr. Westen. You need your rest, and I'll have all these people thrown out if they keep disturbing you."

The nurse's attention was on Michael, and not on Sam. He reached over the bed and snagged the syringe before she knew what happened.

"Hey! Give that back!"

"Call me paranoid, but, no. If you're going to give him something, I want to see the vial you're taking it from before you fill up another shot."

The nurse crossed her muscular arms and stared him down, but it quickly became apparent that this was getting her nowhere. "Fine. I'll be right back."

While she was gone, Sam took the filled syringe to the bathroom, emptied it, and tossed it into the sharps box. The nurse returned with a small cart on wheels, opened a drawer, and pulled out a vial and syringe. She held it up so he could see it. Sam read the label, satisfied, and watched her record the medication into the log on the computer before administering it. At least now, if she was pulling something, there was a record of it and she would be held accountable.

After a few minutes, Michael drifted off to sleep again. Sam returned to his chair and watched the monitors for any sign of distress. When a half hour had gone by with no adverse effects, he relaxed.

"Do you really think she would have given him something to kill him," Maddie asked.

"Right now, I wouldn't put it past anybody, Maddie. Both Mike and Fi are really vulnerable. We've gotta watch out for them."

If he couldn't be out on the streets looking for Elsa, the next best thing was sitting at Mike's bedside keeping watch. There were four cops outside, but he and Jesse were the last line of defense. The three spent the afternoon watching Michael sleep, and each one took some time with Fiona, contrary to the order for her to have no visitors. Just let that burly nurse try to keep him away.

"She's doing better," Jesse said as he released Fiona's hand. "She seems to like having someone touch her."

"That's great," Maddie said. "But we better get out of here before that nurse comes back. I don't like her. She's not very friendly."

"That's probably why she works in ICU. Most of her patients are out, they don't know she's got an abrasive personality."

"But Fiona's unconscious, and she knows we're here."

Sam, who stood in the doorway, nodded in agreement. "So we'll just sneak in here now and then and counteract the effects of Nurse Crankypants." He leaned back a moment, then whispered, "You guys, she's coming."

Jesse tore his hand away from Fi's and leaned over to whisper a quick message in her ear. "We'll be back later." He put a hand against Maddie's back and shepherded her out of the room, and they arrived back at Michael's bedside just in time. The nurse glared at them, knowing they were up to something but was unable to prove it. She did her job, checked on Michael and put notes into his chart, and moved on to Fiona's cubicle.

"Thanks for the warning, Sam," Jesse whispered.

"No problem. We've gotta stick together."

"Agreed."

With Mike and Fi out of action, it felt as if he and Jesse were alone against the world. If the cops would let them, the two could be a real asset to the investigation. But Sam knew that Casey didn't want him involved, since this was his love at stake. He knew that emotions could get in the way, but during the heat of the moment, when the case was new and time was slipping away, he thought he did quite well. He pulled a Michael Westen and focused on getting as much information in as little time as possible to solve the case, leaving his feelings out of it. Now, when he and Jesse had been silently pushed out, and he had time to think, he occupied his mind with his friends and their recovery. It was a lot easier than focusing on Elsa. Otherwise, Sam was afraid he would break and he wouldn't be of any use to anyone.

Sam's phone vibrated in his pocket. "Excuse me a second." He got up and left the ICU. One of the cops followed him at a respectful distance, but Sam was focused on the call and not him as he answered. "Hello."

"Sam, it's me honey."

"Elsa? How... how'd you get free?"

"I didn't. I convinced Martin to let me call you."

He didn't like that she was using the guy's first name. "Honey, what's going on? Have they been... coercing you in any way?"

"What do you mean? I've just had some time to talk to the leader. He's a very gruff man, but he's fighting for a cause, and..."

"A very bad cause. Elsa, listen to me. Do not take a word he says as truth. He will try anything to make you turn around to his side. He was in the Irish Republican Army, for crying out loud, and he killed a lot of innocent people. Don't listen to him!"

"He seems so sincere, and his sense of patriotism..."

Sam blurted, "You don't know what he's really like."

"And you do?"

"I've seen his file. He tried to kill Fiona and Mike. Do you really think someone who would do that is a good guy?"

She hesitated, and Sam hoped that he'd gotten through to her. Finally she spoke again, and he could hear something like a let down in her voice. "He's been good to me, Sam. He won't let anyone lift a finger to hurt me."

"That's because he knows that you're no good to him if you're damaged. He won't get his twenty million if you're hurt. I think I made that pretty clear to him."

"So you would withhold the ransom if I had so much as a scratch on me?"

"No, that's not what I meant. Look, let's not get into this. Can you tell me where you are?"

"No. They're listening."

"Okay, it's alright. Just remember that this will all be over tomorrow. The bank is working on putting the money together for the ransom. Tell Ferguson that it's a lot of cash, and I'll need some help loading it onto the boat, so he shouldn't be surprised if he sees me with someone else."

"Jesse?"

"Yes, Jesse. Or Evan. I'm not sure I want him to get involved yet or not."

She sniffled. "How's he holding up?"

"When I saw him this morning I think he wanted to get in his car, hunt this guy down, and pound his head into the ground. I'm hoping that hanging out with the cops will help cool him down."

"I doubt it. Sam, please go to him. He needs you right now."

"Mike and Fi..." He shook his head, unsure of how he would bounce back and forth between the house and the hospital. "Don't worry. I'll be there for him."

"Thank you. I have to go now."

"Be careful, Elsa. Don't let him get under your skin."

"I promise." The connection was lost before he could say he loved her.

Sam returned to Michael's room, stared down at his friend and saw he was still sleeping. "Jesse, I've gotta go back to the house. If you want to stay here, fine. I'll need my keys."

Jesse handed him the keychain. "I'll stay and be moral support for Maddie."

"Great. I'll be back later. I just talked to Elsa, and she asked me to check on Evan." At the sight of the surprise in Jesse's eyes, he added, "I also want to download the conversation I recorded and listen to it again. I think I heard something on it that might help us pinpoint where Elsa is."

A smile spread across Jesse's face. "Alright. We'll see you later, hopefully with some good news."

"Later, Maddie."

"Good luck, Sam." She hugged him before he left the room, then returned to her seat. "Something is bothering him, Jesse. Something about that conversation he had with Elsa."

"He was probably just glad to be able to talk to her. He'll be okay."

"I hope you're right." She sighed heavily and she wished for a cigarette to calm the tingling in her nerves.


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

Sam parked in the circular drive behind the detectives' cars. When he entered the house, he was surprised to find the living room empty. The dining room table was covered with newspapers, maps, and other documents as well as several computers. One of them was his, and it appeared that it was used. Did he forget to log out of the agency web sites? No, he was certain he did, and in order to get back into them, whoever tried would need to know the user name and password. A quick check confirmed that the browser was used to look at state sites that he had access to, but ones that the detectives would also use on a regular basis.

"Sam, what are you doing here? I thought you were at the hospital," Casey exclaimed as he passed through on his way to the kitchen.

"Yeah, I was." Sam straightened and turned to face him. "While I was there, Elsa called. I recorded the conversation, and I was just going to download it to my computer to listen to it again."

"Were you planning on sharing it with us?"

Sam didn't like the accusatory tone in the detective's voice. "Of course. Here, just let me hook this up and I'll put it on my laptop." He sat at the table and got to work.

"Want anything to drink," Casey asked as he continued on his way.

"Sure, whatever you get is fine with me." He was too busy to care.

Casey returned with a glass of water for Sam and one for himself. He sat in the chair next to him. "All set?"

"Just about." Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a few others. Two of them he didn't recognize, and his gaze stuck on them.

"Oh, Agents Frasier and Ross, FBI," Casey introduced him. "Guys, this is Sam Axe, the victim's fiance."

Sam nodded to them, and received a return nod. The recording finished downloading. "Okay, here it is." He played it and the others listened to the conversation. No one said anything until it was finished.

"Sounds like Stockholm is setting in," Ross said with a bored tone. Just one look at him, and Sam could tell the older man had been jaded by too many of these cases.

"Yeah, but that's not important right now. Did you guys hear that noise in the background?" Sam backed up the recording to the point where he first heard the sound and replayed it. "Ignore what's in the foreground and just listen to what's behind Elsa's voice."

The group strained to hear, a couple people nodded, but not everyone picked up on it. "Can you filter out everything else," Casey asked.

"Yes. E-mail it to me," Frasier said as he sat kitty corner to Sam and logged into the computer. He gave him the e-mail address. Seconds later, he received it and loaded it into the software. "Just a few clicks and we'll be ready. Okay, now let's give it a listen."

With the voices filtered out, and the faint noise cranked up, they all heard a horn blaring. "It's a train."

"Yes." Det. Logan pulled a map out from under a pile of papers and used dishes. "Okay, here's one of the Fast Freddie's locations we pinpointed, and there's a train track nearby. The question is, are we just drawing the wrong conclusions, or is this really the right area?" She drew a large circle in pencil around the track and the fast food joint.

"We're going to find out tonight," Ross barked, then looked at Casey. "Sorry, this is your team. You assign details to go look for this place."

While Casey assigned partners to drive around the general area, Sam checked online for train schedules. The line was for freight and passenger rail, but it didn't matter. As long as they had another train come through when the teams were out, they could hopefully listen and judge how far away they were in relation to the sound and narrow down their search area. It was a long shot, but he'd seen stranger things happen. He made a printout and gave it to Casey.

"Thanks for the evidence, Sam, but we can handle things from here," Casey said.

Sam turned and saw the apologetic look in his eyes. He opened his mouth to speak, but the detective interrupted him.

"Maybe you should go back to the hospital, or the hotel?"

"Wait a minute. Why should I leave? Shouldn't you all go back to the station or something to work on this?" When Casey didn't answer, Sam nodded. "I get it. You guys are enjoying the perks around here, taking advantage of the situation. You know something? If Elsa was here right now, she'd be pretty upset and I'm sure she'd ask you to leave. So I'm asking you to leave. Now." He looked around. "Where's Evan?"

"He went home. We've got officers watching him."

Sam pulled out his phone and called Elsa's son. "Ev, it's me, Sam. Get your butt over to your Ma's house, you're staying here until she's home. The cops are leaving here, so we'll just have the ones who are assigned to watch over you."

"They told me to leave, that I was better off going home."

"Yeah, well I'm throwing them all out. They can go to the station. Maybe it'll help them think better and work harder to get this resolved without giving in to the kidnappers' demands or anyone dying."

"Okay, I'll be there in a little while. And Sam?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks. I know my mom would have done the same thing."

"Yeah, I'm sure she would have. I'll see you when you get here, Evan." He hung up the phone and turned to Casey, who stood nearby with a contrite look on his face.

"I'm sorry, Sam. You know better than anybody how the Feds get..."

"It's not just the Feds, and you know it." Sam tried to keep the bitterness out of his voice.

"Yeah. I'm just not used to this. It's not done, Sam, letting a victim's kin, spouse, friend, lover, or whatever, assist. No matter how well you think you've got your head screwed on, I can't risk the trouble."

"My head understands," Sam said with a frown. "But my heart is pretty ticked off right now."

"I'm sorry." The words came out on a whisper.

"Call me when you need me to deliver the ransom or if there's anything else that comes up."

"I will. Call me if you get anything from the kidnappers or Elsa again."

"I will. Thanks, Casey." Sam waited near the door while the agents and detectives left one by one, their arms full of computers and paperwork. Some of them gave him looks as if he'd betrayed them, when in fact Sam felt as if he was the one betrayed.

After the last car pulled away, it was so quiet in the house, Sam could hear the refrigerator kick on in the kitchen. It was a lonely sound. Evan would soon be there and then he would have company. He glanced around the living room, shocked at the mess. With Colleen missing and presumably an accessory to Elsa's kidnapping, he had two choices: leave the disorder until Elsa came home and hired a new housekeeper, or clean it up himself. He could just imagine her reaction if she came home to this, and he had no doubt that it would include his sleeping in the guest room for the next two weeks.

Evan and the cops arrived a short time later to find Sam on his knees working on a fresh coffee stain on the white living room carpet.

"Uhoh," Evan said as he approached. "Mom's gonna be mad."

Sam gave him a scathing look. "Tell me about it, Kid!"

"I can see why you kicked them out."

Sam sprayed more rug cleaner on the stain and got to his feet. "It wasn't just this. There was no reason for them to be hanging out here, emptying out the fridge and the pantry, while they sat around doing nothing."

"What, are they waiting for the ransom delivery?"

"I don't know what they're doing. They kept sponging intel off me when I found something, and then they wanted more. But I don't see them doing much with it." He shook the frustration away. "I'm sorry, Evan. They're probably doing something, they just won't let me see it. All the more reason for them to go to the station. If they can't share, I don't want them right under my nose. You know what I mean?"

"Yeah." Evan stood with his hands in his pockets, studying Sam as he got down on his knees to attack the stain again. His own nerves were on edge, but he never realized that Sam would have the same symptoms. If he knew the ins and outs of the system and was this unsettled... Evan's anxiety ramped up a notch. "Sam?"

"Yes, Evan." He sat back on his heels and looked up at him.

"I'm sorry that they won't let you work with them. I'm sure if they did, you would have figured out where she is by now and set up a team to rescue my mom."

Sam smiled. "Thanks, Ev. At least somebody in this investigation appreciates me." He returned to work scrubbing the stain.

Evan looked around and saw so much that needed to be done. If this were his place, he wouldn't care. But he knew how his mother treasured her home and liked it to be spotless. She would freak if she saw it now. He started by picking up trash and dirty dishes in the dining room, and he transported them to the kitchen and went back for more.

"I think I got that carpet as clean as it's going to get," Sam announced as he walked through the dining room to the kitchen. He stopped, backed up, and his eyes moved around the room. "You straightened up, Evan. Thanks."

"No problem. I'll work on the kitchen next if you finish in the living room." Evan hauled the last of the dishes into the kitchen, washed the dining room table surface, and said, "The floor just needs vacuuming in here."

"We'll save that for later." When Sam had the debris removed from the living room, he and Evan worked on the kitchen. "I suppose we'll have to check around the house to see if they left any other messes."

"I can't believe this. It's like an army was staying here!" Evan scraped food off plates and put them into the dishwasher.

"I never should have let them hang out here, but I was hoping that with having the team in this house, I could keep closer tabs on what was happening. Get involved as much as I could. Detective Casey was on the fence, but when the Feds came in, that was it. I was out in the cold."

"That's bogus."

"Yeah, well, welcome to my world, Kid. That's typical for government agency operations. We should be glad the FBI is working with the local cops."

When they finished with the kitchen, Sam did a quick sweep of the other rooms downstairs, while Evan checked the bedrooms upstairs. He came down with a few things.

"I was hoping the ops stayed down here," Sam said as he watched Evan put the dishes into the machine.

"Let's just say somebody was either taking a nap up there, or..."

"I don't even wanna hear it." Sam knew that sometimes... things... happened during operations. It was best not to think about it, just clean up the evidence, and let it slide. "Just throw the bedding into the washer. We'll run a load tonight."

Having to clean the house wasn't an entirely bad thing after all. It kept them both busy for awhile and worked off some nervous energy. Still, there was no way Sam would be able to go to sleep. Tomorrow at noon he would deliver the ransom. He and Jesse talked about it, and his friend would be there with him. The last time Evan heard from the bank, they were having trouble getting the last five million dollars. As it was, the cash was being stored in several branches to avoid publicity and risking a bank robbery before the transaction could be made.

Sam tried to sleep. He lay on the bed, but he couldn't relax. He checked his phone at least a half dozen times to make sure he didn't miss anything. On the other side of the wall he heard Evan moving around the room. No doubt he was just as anxious. Unable to nod off, Sam got up, put on his swimming trunks, and knocked on Evan's door.

"What? You're awake?"

"Hard to sleep with you banging around on this side of the wall, Ev. Come on, get changed and we'll go swim until we're beat. Maybe that'll help us get to sleep."

Evan looked relieved that Sam came up with a plan. "I'll be right down."

Sam covered the length of the pool four times before Evan joined him. They held a half-hearted competition for a few laps, but then each one got lost in his thoughts and swam at his own pace. When he finally tired, Sam did a backstroke to the shallow end and pulled himself up to sit on the edge. Evan joined him.

"Do you think they're really gonna let her go?"

"I hope so. If they want the money, they better."

Evan stared out into the darkness beyond the underwater lighting. "I'm just afraid they'll get the money and kill her. I mean, those guys shot your friends and wanted them dead."

"They were shot for a far different reason, Evan." Sam's hands gripped the edge and he stared down into the waves. "I feel like this was my fault."

"What do you mean?"

"It was probably because of my association with Mike and Fi that Elsa was targeted. Take her, shoot and kill Mike and Fi, and these guys probably figured I'd just blindly do whatever they wanted." He turned his attention to Evan. "And I did too, because I know that the chances of getting her back are greater if I give in to their demands."

"So then they should play fair and give her back, right?"

Sam didn't answer.

"Right?"

He closed his eyes and bowed his head.

"Sam! They're not gonna let her go alive, are they." His voice caught as he spoke.

He met Evan's eyes, and his own looked haunted in the muted light as he replied. "They let her see their faces, Ev. That's not good."

"How do you know that?" His throat was so constricted, he could barely speak.

"I talked to her today, and she told me."

"You talked to her? Well, why don't you call her back? The number should be in your phone, right?"

"Yes, it's in there, but it would be risky. And before you ask, I already checked, it's a burner phone, so there's no name attached to it." He put a comforting arm around the younger man's shoulders. "Ev, I know what I'm doing."

Evan sat with a heavy weight on his shoulders, and the extra press of Sam's arm did him in. He hadn't cried since his Dad's funeral, and now he would have to do it all over again with his Mom. At least with his father he'd had time to prepare somewhat, but she was too young and healthy, and this wasn't right. He didn't want to break down in front of Sam. His stoic front dissolved like sugar spread on the pool surface, and he lost it. Evan gave in to the gentle pressure of Sam's hand pulling him to his side. He was afraid that Sam would try to say something to make him feel better, but he kept silent and just let him release the emotion.

When he could finally speak again, Evan asked, "Why are we giving this creep twenty million dollars if he's going to kill my Mom?"

"I know it sounds crazy. But the authorities are hoping to either find the kidnappers before they kill Elsa and take the money and run, or they capture them trying to run and prevent another kidnapping and... and murder by this group. Maybe there will be some justice."

"The only justice would be for them to have their throats slit and Mom home safe." Evan sniffled.

Kid, you don't know how much I agree with you! But Sam kept his thoughts to himself. He was replaying the phone call from Elsa in his mind. He heard the train in the background, but there was another sound that he couldn't distinguish at the time. An inspiration hit him, and he shot to his feet and hurried inside. He left so abruptly, Evan almost fell over sideways. He stuck out his hand to break his fall and turned to watch Sam run to the house.

"Sam? What is it?"

With headphones on, Sam listened to Elsa's phone call. He had limited capabilities to filter out her voice, but he did what he could. He heard the train again, which in itself sounded like any other. When he muffled it, he heard the sound he sought. Evan moved into his peripheral vision, and he smiled up at him.

"I think I found something." He unplugged the headphones and let him listen. "This is your Ma's phone conversation, with a few things toned down. Hear that sound?"

"Is that an airplane?"

"Not just an airplane, but a single engine airplane taking off. If the other clues we have are correct, this place is nowhere near the airport. Somebody out that way has their own private airstrip." He turned off the recording and got into his browser. "Kid, you better make some coffee. We're gonna be up for awhile."


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Here we go, it's the only private strip near the railroad tracks and the fast food place Elsa mentioned."

Evan stared at the map on the screen. "That still leaves a lot of area to search."

"Not really. This here is an active factory. This one is empty, this is a warehouse, and this is another active business. It's gotta be one of these two places." He tapped the defunct factory and warehouse.

"Are you going to tell the cops?"

Sighing out a breath in surrender, Sam replied. "I wish I didn't have to. If I could call in a favor with the CIA or something I would, but I'm still kind of on the outs with them."

"Man, those guys have no mercy."

"You got that right." Sam picked up the phone and called Casey. "Hey, Detective, it's me, Sam Axe." He put the phone on speaker so Evan could hear.

Casey mumbled, "Sam, do you realize what time it is?"

"The way I see it, it's time for a raiding party."

"What the hell are you talking about," Casey asked, still groggy.

"I think I've figured out where Elsa is. Evan and I would do this ourselves, or get my friend Jesse involved, but..."

The detective suddenly came fully awake. "No! You stay out of this, Axe!"

"Then you better get your butt in gear. We don't know how much time Elsa has left." He picked up his gun and pulled back the safety, certain that Casey would hear the sound and identify it.

"Don't even think about it! Where do you think she is? We'll check it out right now."

"Damn straight, you will," Sam answered. "It's either a factory or a warehouse on Rigby Road, and the closest cross street is Woodman. There's a cluster of buildings along that road, but the factory and warehouse are less than a block apart on the west side of Rigby."

"We can check it out, but I'm not sure what we can do. The kidnappers said they would have the place rigged to blow."

"Find a bomb squad member with Special Forces training. He should know how to get around it. If he can't do it, he better be an Army Ranger and not embarrass the SEALs."

"I think I know a guy on the Miami PD bomb squad who was in Delta Force. Thanks, Sam."

"We wanna be there when this goes down."

"No, it's too dangerous."

"Oh please, Casey. You know who you're talking to. I'll get Evan prepared, but he'll stay out of the line of fire. End of story."

"Okay, fine. I'll pick you up at the house."

"Good. When should we expect you?"

"Give us a half hour to get ready."

Sam heard sheets rustling on the other side of the phone. "Okay. It'll be sunrise an hour and a half after that. Perfect time for a raid." He smiled at Evan, his eyes sparkling with the memory of other raids conducted in the wee hours of the morning in other places in the world. "If you're not here by 0400, we're leaving without you. Be warned, I'll be loaded up big time."

After he hung up, Evan stared at him. "We're really going to do this, with or without them?"

"Preferably with. We'll have more boots on the ground that way." Sam slapped Evan on the back. "Come on, Kid! Time to get dressed for combat!"

Evan had no idea what he was in for. As they went upstairs, Sam rattled off the kind of clothing he would need. He never wanted to join the military for a number of reasons: the uniforms, the discipline, the haircuts, but most importantly, he didn't want to get shot up.

"Okay, go get dressed and meet me in my room as soon as you're done."

Evan nodded, his nerves causing him to jitter. This was for real, and he was scared to death. How anyone could be as calm as Sam was, he would never understand. When he finished, he tripped in to the room that Sam and his mother shared. He was already dressed and talking on the phone. He waved Evan inside.

"Okay, see you there, Jesse."

"What do you want me to do now?"

"Here ya go," Sam said as he handed Evan a heavy piece of equipment.

"Is this a bullet proof vest?"

"Bingo! It's a spare. Go ahead, put it on." Sam slipped a vest over his own head and pulled all the straps into place. Evan still examined his, trying to figure which way was up. Sam let out a breath. "Here, give it to me and just stand there." In a few seconds the vest fit Evan like a glove. "Okay, have you ever held a gun before?"

"Uh, when I played a video game."

"Oh brother, we've got our work cut out for us," Sam muttered. He checked his sidearm to make sure it was loaded, holstered it, and pulled out a semi-automatic rifle from the closet.

If Evan's mouth hadn't been so dry, he would have choked on his saliva when he saw it. "Does Mom know you have that in here?"

"Oh jeez, Kid, will you relax? This one is your Mom's. I bought it for her, and I've been teaching her how to use it. It's real simple." Sam gave him some quick instruction, then he loaded a magazine on it. "Just remember you've got live rounds in that thing, so you better make damn sure whatever you're aiming at is something you wanna hit."

Evan shook from his shoulders down to his boots. "I don't know if I should be doing this."

"Hey, remember when we stole that big rig? You had some nerves, but you did okay." Sam clamped a hand on Evan's shoulder. "You'll be fine, Evan."

"But this is my Mom's life at stake here."

He heard an engine in the circular drive. "Our ride's here, Kid. No time for second guessing. Jesse's going to meet us out there, and we've got lots of tactical support, so don't worry. Everything will work out alright." He grabbed a small bag and his own semi-automatic rifle, and hurried out of the room. Evan trembled and ran behind him with the gun held exactly the way Sam told him to hold it. He was worried enough about screwing up in the middle of the operation. He didn't need to start it off with a bang, and not a good one at that.

"You weren't kidding when you said you'd be loaded up," Casey muttered as Sam got in the front and Evan settled in back with their gear. He gave the younger man an extra long look with doubt in his eyes when he saw how scared Evan was.

"I'm not going to rely on amateurs." He glanced back at Evan. "Well, the kid is a last resort."

"He stays in the car, Axe. And you too. We've got a bomb squad on the way, SWAT, the FBI, everybody's in on this party. And if you're wrong, it's coming out of your pocket."

"I couldn't be more sure about this, Casey."

Casey drove over the railroad tracks and a quarter mile later found Rigby Road. He turned right and drove up to where a large contingent of cars, SUVs, and a large panel van parked in an empty field. The warehouse and factory were just up the road half a city block away.

Sam got out of the car, telling Evan, "Stay put for now, Kid." He pulled out a pair of binoculars, rested his elbows on the car roof, and focused on the buildings. "Yeah, there's a light on in there. It's faint, they've got paper or something over the windows, but there's the sign that the factory is occupied." He handed the binoculars to Casey and he looked.

"You're right. But that could just be security lighting. We need to get someone in there to check it out." He sensed Sam's arm twitch, and he stuck out a hand to hold him. "Not you." He got on his radio. "Possible target seen in back. Send out Recon One."

"Recon One scrambling."

From behind the car, Sam and Casey watched the team of four black-clad men crouch and run across the street with their weapons at the ready. Sam wished he could be with them. When he saw the sleekness of their movements and how silently they went in, he lost all reservations. This was a good reconnaissance team, Special Forces trained: they would get the job done right. The team was barely across the road when they disappeared into the shadows.

"Now we wait," Casey spoke softly. He leaned against the car with one arm up on the roof. He would have preferred to pace or do something, but he feared that it would only stir up Sam and make him even more eager to get in on the action. In the dimness of the coming dawn he could see the impatience written all over his face. He'd heard quite a few things about Sam Axe and his friends, so when this case came up, he anticipated he would have a lot of trouble with him trying to fly off and do his own thing. Axe surprised him. Yes, he wanted to be involved, but he backed off and was cooperative enough to give them what information he found without begging to be part of the operation. This time, however, he demanded it. Casey didn't have the heart to say 'no', because it might very well be his assistance that helped the team.

All his illusions of Sam charging in recklessly were unfounded, and in fact, he seemed more relaxed than Casey himself. Next time, he wouldn't be so quick to judge a former special ops guy.

"Hey, Sam."

"Jesse, you made it." Sam turned to Casey. "He's going in with me."

Casey saw the determined looks on their faces and nodded. "We'll work you into a team, I promise."

"They're coming back," Sam announced in an even tone and moved through the tall grass toward the FBI agents who kept under cover of a grove of large oaks. "Let's see what they found."

Casey leaned into the open window. "Evan, you stay here. Okay?"

"You'll get no arguments from me!" His voice shook despite his best efforts to keep the fear at bay.

"Report, Recon One." Ross barked.

"We found a hole in the siding. Ferguson, McLaren and Sullivan were in there with reinforcements. Six total personnel. The skeleton crew was watching over a door. Looked like an office, it's freestanding, and the walls aren't very sturdy." The recon team leader informed them.

"So you didn't see Elsa," Sam asked.

"No. We suspect she's in that room. The big three were asleep on cots away from the light while the other three walked around the office and the interior perimeter."

"Recommendations, gentlemen," Frasier asked.

"Are the three close together or spread out?"

"Axe..." Casey muttered.

"Good question, Sir." The recon leader acknowledged Sam's query with a nod. "They were leaving about twenty five to thirty feet of space between them. I recommend we wait until two of them get close to the road side of the building and lob in some smoke canisters. Meanwhile, we throw in a couple more on the other side near the office, get the one guy there, and the rest of the team swoops in to take the kidnappers before they know what happened."

"Yeah, but what if they wake up shooting," Jesse countered. "They could hit someone, or their bullets could pierce that office. We don't want to hit the hostage or set off the booby trap."

"What do you suggest we do," Ross asked.

"We work as quietly as possible to create an entrance at three points." Someone provided him with a large piece of paper and a pencil, and Jesse hunched over an SUV hood and drew a map. "Here, here, and here. We time it so that a team takes care of these two guys, a larger team comes in from the back to slip in and cover the three masterminds, but they'll have to be ready when things happen up there. A third team grabs the single guard and takes care of the booby trap. We've got enough people to do this."

Frasier smirked. "You're not putting that kid in there with you."

Under the glow of the muted flashlight, Sam stared at the agent. "I have no intention of letting Evan come along. I just got him all prepped so he could feel like he was doing something. He's too scared to be of any use in this operation."

"What about that gun you gave him?"

"Casey, do you really think I'd put a loaded gun into that kid's hands? It's full of blanks. Don't worry, I never had any intention of putting him anywhere near the action."

Frasier and Ross turned away and consulted in hushed tones. One of the SWAT team members joined them. Sam recognized him from an operation many years ago. He never got the guy's name, but he remembered that he was a good sniper. The man glanced at Sam and his hushed voice carried just enough for Sam to know that the guy was on his side. He was fighting for him and Jesse to be allowed in the fray. Sam glanced at his watch and noted the time. In a half hour, dawn would break. Time was wasting.

"Okay, Axe, you and Porter are in. I want you with the team that takes the third guard."

"Thanks." He nodded toward Casey and trotted across the street with Jesse and the two others on his team. He saw Evan ducked in the back seat, just his forehead and eyes showing above the door. Sam gave him a salute, silently telling him that everything would be okay.

The team moved along the side of the building, looking for a way inside, and found a door. The door had a multi-pane window that wasn't covered in paper, so the men crouched out of the light spill. The guard's shadow floated past, and one of the men picked the lock when the guard was out of range.

"Subject is going around the office," the team leader murmured into his radio.

The reply came back in the team's ear pieces. "Copy. On my mark, enter the building."

Sam waited crouched down, his legs protesting keeping the position for so long. His entire body balanced on the balls of his feet, the nervous energy bouncing him slightly. In the faint light, he saw that he wasn't alone.

"Alright, on three. One... two... three."

The door pushed in and the team of four with two bomb squad members behind them burst into the room. A smoke canister rolled ahead and stopped in front of the guard. More canisters came from the team entering to the left and enveloped the cots in a fog. Voices shouted, a few shots rang out, and to the untrained eye it would seem as if total chaos ensued. Three teams converging on the kidnappers, a total of sixteen police, FBI, and one former spy and a SEAL created a panic situation for their targets, but the teams worked like this was an every day occurrence. Sam and Jesse found the single guard. He shot at them, but they came out of the smoke and lunged at him, taking him to the floor before he could get off another round.

It didn't take long to detain the six kidnappers. The teams hauled them off to the panel van and they were taken away to be booked into a high security facility until the day of their trials. The smoke cleared, leaving Sam standing in front of the office with his team. He glanced at the two men dressed in thick padding.

"Well, it's all yours. Don't screw this up."

"We won't. Don't worry."

"Sam, you should probably back off, just to be on the safe side," Jesse urged him and pulled on his elbow.

"No, I'm fine right here." He wanted to be close enough to rush to Elsa's side when it was all over, or risk death if the bomb squad failed. If she didn't make it, he didn't want to make it either.

Jesse stepped away to a safer location, but close enough to assist if necessary. The bomb squad used a sensor to determine where Elsa was in the room. Then one of them drilled a hole in the window covered with paper and stuck a fiber optic camera inside. After a few minutes, he pulled it out and consulted with his colleague in soft tones. The two stood and approached Sam.

"Well?"

"It's a pretty sophisticated set up in there, trip wires all over the place. It's like a ball of yarn unraveled, and we don't know if we cut one strand if it's connected to another that loosens up the tension on the mine and it goes off."

"Great." Sam felt dark anger rising up in him, but he held it in check.

"We can get in through the top, though." He quickly explained what he and his partner proposed to do. "First step is to cut through the ceiling."

"You sure they didn't rig that up too?"

"No. Believe it or not, they were only thinking two dimensionally when they came up with this. When we lower ourselves down, there's enough space to get the hostage out without tripping anything. She's got like a six inch buffer around her."

"Plenty of room to get her out. Okay, do you need me to do anything?"

"No, Sir. You and your friend just be ready to grab her when we bring her down to the ground."

A smile crossed his face. "That we can do."

Two men took a saw up to the office roof and prepared to cut.

"Wait a second," Sam said as he came forward. "Did anybody warn Elsa to stay put? Let me talk to her first." He didn't bother to wait for anyone to hold him back or protest. He got up to the door, peered through the small hole, and saw that Elsa was awake and looking around with anxiety flashing in her eyes. "Elsa, honey, it's me, Sam. Don't move!" He heard her making noises like she was trying to tell him something. "We know that the room is rigged to blow if we try to rescue you. Don't worry. We have a team coming in through the ceiling. In a minute they're going to cut a hole in the top so they can lower themselves down. Then they'll grab your chair and lift you out. Okay?" He paused and heard her make more noises. "Don't try to undo your bindings or breach that space around you. Trust me, sweetheart, it'll be okay. We'll get you out of there."

He nodded to the team, and the men on top of the office started up the saw and created the hole. It was large enough for them and Elsa. The sheet metal clanged as the team tossed it aside to land on the concrete below. Elsa looked up at them with fear in her eyes, crying, and they knew panic when they saw it.

"Oh, crap."

The team member with the saw jumped down from the office and spoke into his mic. "The ceiling must have had a sensor. There's another bomb with a timer. Repeat, there's another bomb with a timer set to go off in less than a minute." The two bomb squad men quickly lowered themselves inside as the third man reported what he'd seen. They grabbed the chair and tugged on the lines. Outside the office, Sam, Jesse, and several others pulled on the lines to bring them up as quickly as possible. Their feet touched the roof, they disconnected from the lines, and took hold of the chair to drop it gently to the floor. Sam and Jesse waited. As soon as the legs hit the floor, the two repositioned their hands on the back, lifted the seat with their free hands, and ran for the exit. The bomb squad team jumped off the roof and ran with them.

Elsa screamed behind the gag. The sound, however, was drowned out when the timer expired and the bomb exploded. Shrapnel flew in every direction, and those inside ducked or were thrown to the floor. Sam's legs came out from under him, and with his hands taken up by the chair, he had nothing to break his fall. The three of them crashed to the floor, and a fireball erupted, trapped by the factory ceiling.


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

The concussion from the explosion still rang in his ears. No amount of shaking his head could make it go away. Sam gasped for breath, the wind temporarily knocked out of him, and he glanced to his left and saw Elsa and Jesse lay face down.

"Sir, are you okay?"

Sam turned as he hauled himself up to his knees. The bomb squad guys were wrapped in padding, making their tumble a lot easier. One of the perks of the job, but still not something Sam would ever want to do. Being around Fiona and her love of things that went boom was bad enough.

As he quickly assessed himself, Sam realized that the two men shielded them from serious injury. "Thanks, I'm fine. Let's get these two out of here." He glanced over his shoulder at the small fire burning where a short while ago four walls stood. He untied Elsa's hands, while the others took care of the bindings that held her ankles tight to the chair legs. "Okay, I'll take her. You guys get Jesse."

Jesse groaned and his arm moved underneath him. "No. I'm... I'm okay. I'm okay. Just got the wind knocked out of me for a minute, that's all." When his head came up, his forehead displayed a growing bruise.

"You better get yourself checked out, Jesse. You got yourself quite the knock on the head there."

"Yeah. Must be why I feel kinda woozy." He smiled and with great effort got himself to his hands and knees. The bomb squad guys each took an arm and helped him to his feet. "Thanks, fellas. I think I got it from here."

While the men escorted Jesse out of the building, Sam picked up Elsa and carried her away from the scene. A couple ambulances waited across the street, so he took her to one and laid her on the gurney. In the growing light of dawn he looked down, and even with dirt smudged on her face and the bruise on her head, she looked beautiful. Sam held onto her hand and wouldn't let go, staying by her side, smoothing her hair back from her face.

"Is she okay," Evan asked as he screeched to a halt near her.

"She's a little banged up, but she'll be fine."

"That's good." Evan looked Sam in the eye. "Thanks. You could have been killed in there, and my mom too."

"I wasn't gonna let that happen, Kid. I love her too much." The corner of his mouth tipped up into a smile.

Elsa made a noise and got their attention. Evan touched the side of her face. "Mom? Mom, can you hear me?"

She opened her eyes and looked at him, disoriented that he appeared to be upside down. Then she twisted her head to see him and Sam, and she smiled. "I thought I'd never see my two favorite men again." She moved to sit up.

"Hey Mom, maybe you better not do that." Evan put a hand on her shoulder, but she resisted.

"I'm fine." Elsa rolled off the gurney and her arms went around Sam. "Oh, Sam." He couldn't hold her tightly enough as his arms enveloped her. Tears flowed freely from both of them, and he kissed every inch of her face as she did the same to him. Two sets of lips connected, and it would have taken an act of God to get them apart.

From the sidelines, Evan watched his mom kissing Sam as if he was the air she breathed and she couldn't get enough. He crossed his arms and sat on the back bumper of the ambulance, enthralled by their display of wanton affection. When she was with his dad, she would have never been caught doing something like that, although this was an exceptional circumstance. Still, he never imagined she would love someone so hard and so deep after his father. He felt a growing admiration towards the man who stole her heart as he replayed the scene in his mind of Sam working his way into the team and risking his life to save hers. Would Dad have done something like that? He couldn't see it. Not that he loved her any less. He just wasn't built for that kind of bravado. Evan came to the conclusion that Sam was a good man for his mom and anyone else would be a far worse choice.

Evan drove the car Jesse brought to the scene and took him, his mother, and Sam to the hospital to get checked out. The three insisted they didn't need to be transported by ambulance, so he volunteered to take them. Despite a few minor bumps they would be okay. He watched his mother come out of the emergency room with Sam, his arm around her, laughing at something she said. Jesse walked to the side. He noted that their black clothing contrasted sharply with his mother's light but soiled tan suit, the outfit she'd been wearing when she was kidnapped.

"You all are something else," Evan said as he examined them more closely. "You should see what you look like in the mirror."

"What? What do you mean?" Elsa looked at him, then glanced at Sam and Jesse. A smile formed on her face and she nodded. "I see it now." She reached up and ran a light touch over Sam's forehead where he sported a faint bruise.

He pulled away. "What are you doing?"

"You and Jesse both have bruises."

"You should talk," Sam replied and ran his thumb over the one on her forehead.

"Oh dear," she muttered and leaned into him. "Let's go home, Sam. I'm taking the day off and recovering from this ordeal."

"Sounds like a great plan, Elsa." He put his arms around her and kissed her. "Jesse, heading home?"

"Nah, I'm gonna go see Mike and Fi."

"We'll be by later." He glanced at Evan. "What are you planning to do now?"

"I don't know, man. I'm just kind of overwhelmed by everything, you know? Mom, I know we haven't spent a lot of time together lately, but... could we do lunch or dinner sometime soon?"

"Sure. I'll make the time in my schedule, just let me know when." She turned out of Sam's grip and gave him a hug and a kiss on the cheek. "I would invite you over, but it seems that I'm out of a housekeeper for a little while."

"Hey, did the cops ever figure out what happened with her," Jesse asked.

"She just dropped off the grid," Sam replied. "They think she was a former girlfriend of one of the kidnappers and she helped them get access to Elsa. After that, who knows where she went, but you can be sure the cops will be looking for her."

"Good. Well, I'm gonna get out of here. Hey, you guys need a ride, don't you?"

"Don't worry, we'll make arrangements. Thanks, Jesse." Elsa gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Thanks for helping to free me."

"It was my pleasure, Elsa. You mean a lot to Sam, and we all would have hated to see something bad happen to you."

After Jesse left, Elsa called her driver to pick them up. He dropped Evan off at his house, and then drove the couple home. Finally alone in the back of the limousine, Elsa buried herself in Sam's arms and they shared slow passionate kisses that lit a fire that it seemed no sense of weariness could extinguish. When they arrived at home, Elsa led the way to the bedroom.

Along the way, she removed her suit jacket. "I can't wait to get out of these grimy clothes!"

"I can't wait to get you out of those grimy clothes!" He laughed.

"Sam!" She slapped his arm playfully and ducked into the bathroom adjoining the bedroom. "I'll be out in a little while." She left the door open a few inches, one eye peeking out along with part of a saucy smile. "Just make yourself comfortable."

"You sure you don't need any help in there?" He grinned.

"It'll take twice as long if I let you help." She laughed and made a shooing motion with her hand. "Just go on, get the bed warmed up. I'll be right there."

Once she stood under the steaming spray, the full force of Elsa's weariness finally hit her. She hadn't slept much since the kidnappers kept her sitting up the entire time and they left the light on in the office. Her ankles still showed red welts where they tied her. She rubbed her wrists that bore the same markings. In time they would fade, she knew that. It couldn't have been much easier for Sam. When they kissed she knew how much he'd worried about her and her safety. On the way to Evan's, her son couldn't stop talking about how Sam handled the last couple of days and horned his way into the rescue operation. Not that she had any doubts about his feelings for her, but if she had, they would have been totally obliterated like that booby trapped office. He risked everything for her. The least she could do was give him whatever he wanted, even if she felt too tired.

Elsa came out of the steamy bathroom and found that the heavy curtains had been drawn, blocking out a good portion of the daylight. Her eyes shifted to the bed where she saw Sam lying on his back, the covers turned down except where they covered him to his waist. He was unclothed and his hair was wet. He must have taken a shower in the other bathroom. Had she really been in there long enough for him to take off his clothes and clean up, then prepare the bed and fall asleep? She dropped the towel she'd wrapped herself in and slipped in between the sheets. He felt cool against her skin still warm from the shower. She nestled into his side, pulled the covers up around them, and rested her head on his chest. That was how she drifted off to sleep.

In his dream, Sam felt her against him and he put an arm around Elsa to protect her from the kidnappers. If he could help it, he would never let her out of his sight again, and he silently vowed that he would stringently check all the staff to make sure that none of them were penetrable and willing to assist in another plot. He would rather die than see her harmed again.

While they recovered, Jesse went to the hospital to visit Michael and Fiona. The two officers still kept watch. Even though the initial crisis was over, Jesse felt relieved to see that they were there in case of any fallout from the arrests. He was surprised to enter the cubicle and find Michael alone and awake. His eyes looked bleary, but he recognized Jesse when he saw him. A smile stretched across his face.

"Jesse."

"Hey Mike, where's your mom?"

"I sent her home. She needs some rest."

Jesse grasped the rail and looked down at him, then his eyes slid over to the darker cubicle where Fiona lay. "Anything new on Fi?"

"They won't let me see her. They won't tell me anything." A weak hand ran over his face. "I can't sleep without knowing she's okay." As he spoke, his volume rose, signaling to Jesse that he was frustrated. Michael reached out and grabbed Jesse's sleeve, his grip weak, but as forceful as he could muster. "You gotta help me, Jesse. I have to get over there and see her. I just know if I talk to her, she'll wake up. She'll be fine. She's gotta be fine." His eyes crinkled along with his brow as he tried to control his agony.

Jesse's expression softened and he rubbed Michael's shoulder. "Come on, settle down. You get any more excited and that heart monitor's gonna set off alarm bells at the nurse's station. And Nurse Gargantua is working today. Don't want to get her mad." He smiled at the memory of the day before. "You should have seen it yesterday when she was going to give you a shot. Sam was suspicious of what was in it, and he took it away from her. I thought it was going to be a wrestling match right there on the floor."

"Good old Sam, always looking out for us." Michael tired easily and lay his head back on the pillow. "Jesse, see what you can do about getting us into the same room or something. Maybe Sam can help." He swallowed a lump in his throat. "Please. I don't want Fi to be alone like that, and I can't get up to see her, and..."

Jesse nodded and patted his shoulder. "I'll talk to your doctor, see what we can do. Maybe when your mom comes back, she and I can gang up on him." He gave Michael a reassuring smile. "I know they say she's getting better. One of these days they'll let people go in to see her officially. Unofficially, we've snuck in there a couple of times. She knows we're here, and that she's not alone."

Michael turned his head so his eyes were full on Jesse's. A hardness slipped into his features as he said, "I can't wait for 'one of these days'. Neither can she."

"Alright, I'll see what I can do. You just try to rest, okay?"

"Okay." Michael let out a sound that was half sigh, half groan as his weary eyes slipped closed and he succumbed again to the medications.

Jesse stayed for awhile, but when it became apparent that Madeline would not be back soon, he decided to go in search of Michael and Fi's doctor, or doctors, and make some kind of arrangement.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The clock beside the bed told her that it was almost three when Elsa opened her eyes and looked at it. The bedroom was dark, but not black like the middle of the night. She confirmed that fact when she threw on a robe and went to the window, parted the curtains, and saw the blazing sunlight bouncing off the bay. Movement on the ground caught her eye, and she saw Sam settling into a lounge chair with a towel and a mojito, dressed in his swimming trunks. She smiled. Perhaps he would like a little company. The sleep did her a lot of good, and she felt almost normal. Maybe a few days spent alone with Sam would help. Then she thought about the hotel and wondered how things went while she was gone.

"Siobahn, hi, it's Elsa." She smiled at the exuberance her assistant displayed on the phone. "Yes, I'm fine. Thank you. I'm going to take a few days off to get my equilibrium back, and I'll be in on Monday to start up where we left off. Is there anything I need to know?" She listened patiently, happy that everything ran smoothly while she was gone, yet she couldn't help but feel slighted. If she suddenly disappeared, and the hotel apparently operated fine without her, what did that mean? Was she insignificant? Did she really make a difference at all? She tried to shrug off the negative feeling, put on a cheerful face along with her bathing suit, and went down to the pool to spend the afternoon with the man she loved who saved her life.

She walked across the hot cement, wishing she'd worn her sandals, but the bright expression on Sam's face when he saw her made Elsa forget her discomfort. There were times when she doubted that she would ever be rescued, and the only thing that kept her sane was the thought of seeing that dimpled smile again. He studied her from head to toe. Suddenly, the heat had nothing on his eyes staring over his sunglasses at her and making her melt.

"Hey, you're awake. I thought you'd sleep for a week, sweetie," Sam said as she stopped at the lounger next to him. His eyes stayed on her every movement as she lay her towel over the vinyl slats and stretched out on it. "Did you put some sun screen on?"

She smiled. "No, I forgot. I'm always too busy to get out like this, and when I do I forget that I need protection." Her gaze locked on his as she realized that she needed more than just sunscreen. "Sam, I need your help."

He heard the seriousness in her tone. "What kind of help?" His expression turned sober as he swung his legs off the chaise and turned to her.

"Obviously, there was something wrong with my security, or I never would have been kidnapped."

"Yeah, about that. We think that Colleen was the leak who helped those guys pinpoint when and where to take you."

Sorrow filled her eyes. "I trusted her. Sam, I loved her like she was my family! And she turned on me?"

"I'm sure they'll get the whole story out of her if they ever find her. But the point is, I'm as much to blame in this, because if I'd done a background check more thorough than the hotel security team did, I might have been able to prevent this from ever happening."

"She worked for me a long time. You had no reason to suspect her of anything."

"But in my line of work, suspicion is practically second nature."

She looked at him strangely. "Did you run a background check on me after we met?"

An uncomfortable silence followed. He could say that he knew she was too nice to need a check, but he would never lie to her. "Elsa, don't take this the wrong way, but yes, I did. You should have had me checked out, too. Nobody can be too careful these days, you know?"

"I don't know what to say. I feel hurt that you didn't trust me, but on the other hand, I shouldn't be surprised considering how this relationship started. We got together for fun and casual sex. It wasn't built on trust." She stared off into the distance. "I suppose I shouldn't be angry with you." She turned back to him with a soft smile. "I'm way too trusting for my own good sometimes, I guess."

"I'm sorry, Elsa." He reached out and caressed her face. "Sometimes I envy you your ability to be so... innocent."

"Naive would be more like it." She held up the tube of sunscreen that lay on the table between them and smiled in a way that he could never refuse. "Would you do my back?"

Sam got up, lowered Elsa's chaise lounge so it was flat, and guided her to lay on her stomach. He squeezed a large blob into his hand, rubbed his hands together and massaged the lotion outward over her shoulders and worked down to the band of her bikini bottom. He knew he used just the right amount of pressure when she moaned and a wide smile graced her face. Next he worked on her legs, and as he neared her ankles, he saw the redness from the ropes used to keep her tied to the chair. It brought up a surge of anger in him. He was glad he didn't have a chance to confront the kidnappers. He probably would have just mowed them all down and saved the government the expense of a trial.

"Elsa," Sam hesitated, unsure of how to bring up what he wanted to discuss.

She noticed the reticence in his voice and glanced at him over her shoulder. "What, Sam?"

"That last time we spoke on the phone, you used the kidnapper's first name."

"Yes, I did." She raised herself up on her elbows and looked at him. "I don't understand. Was that a problem?"

"Usually, it means that the kidnap victim is developing empathy for the kidnapper, that the captive is starting to side with the captor."

"I wasn't siding with him," Elsa protested. "It was just that he treated me well, and..."

Sam grasped her wrist, the redness still evident. "Does this look like he treated you well?" He controlled his anger, released her, and his hand moved to stroke her face. "Elsa, you don't understand. He was treating you nice, as you say, so that when he killed you, you'd be blindsided and easier to take down. No fighting. You would have been too shocked to do anything in your defense. If you'd given him trouble, you would have been harder to control... and kill."

The truth of what Sam told her hit Elsa hard. She blinked to keep the tears at bay. A sob exploded out of her, and the floodgates opened. She'd been so glad to be home, it never really impacted her in how much in danger she was. She always assumed that Sam would rescue her, or at least organize the ransom to free her.

"Why would he want to kill me if he was getting all that money?"

"I don't know, honey." Sam sat on the chaise and pulled her into his lap as she cried. He realized that she had no clue about the psychological games that captors played with their captives, and she simply got sucked in. It hurt him, because now she would have to reconcile with herself that she'd been duped. She might even think she was stupid for falling for it. He would be there to get her through the coming days and weeks, to help her return to a normal life, and somehow he would convince her that it wasn't her fault.

After getting herself together, Elsa was in no mood to laze at the pool. But she realized that she was hungry. "You'll think this is crazy," she said. "I feel like I need to go eat in a restaurant and be out in public like normal people. Without the concern that I'll be snatched at any moment." She looked at him with a hint of fear in her eyes. "Does that make sense?"

Sam got her up on her feet and took her into his arms. "It makes perfect sense, Elsa. Let's get dressed and go out, have an early dinner, and then we can go see Mike and Fi. How's that sound?"

"That would be perfect. Thank you, Sam!"

He kissed her lips and released her, watched her walk away into the house, and picked up his cell phone. Talking with Elsa about her fears suddenly reminded him of a threat that everyone had forgotten in the middle of the crisis. "Hey, Casey, it's Sam Axe."

"Sam! How are you?" He sounded a lot happier to hear from him now that everything was over and done.

"I'm fine. Elsa's going to need a little time to get over this, but she'll be okay. Listen, the reason I'm calling is that I was wondering about something. Have you had a chance to interrogate any of the kidnappers yet?"

"No, the Feds took them and they're handling the interrogations."

"Oh, I see."

"Why? What's up, Axe? I can tell by the sound of your voice, something's bothering you."

"Ferguson asked me for the hospital where Mike and Fi are, and now I'm concerned that his friends might be after them, to finish the job, so to speak."

"They're still under twenty-four hour guard. Don't worry. No one is getting past them."

"Two cops with Glocks. Yeah, that'll stop a couple guys with automatics."

Casey sighed. "Sam, there's only so much we can do. The FBI, CIA, and Homeland Security are all watching for known associates of Ferguson coming into the country. And don't start on me about them coming in illegally. Just relax, everybody's doing the best they can."

"Well, you don't mind if I arrange something a little more... secure. Do you?"

"That's not my call. If you want private security, that's up to you. Just don't expect it to be on the taxpayers' dime."

"Of course not. I wouldn't have it any other way. Thanks, Casey."

"You're welcome, Sam. If I ever need your expertise, can I give you a call?"

"Sure." Sam said goodbye and closed the connection. By now, Elsa would have had time to dress and would no doubt be waiting for him. He would have preferred to have a little alone time with her, but he knew that the best thing she could do was to face her fears head on while the desire to do so was still there.

As he moved toward the back door, he heard the sound of an engine. He turned toward the open water and saw a speedboat hurrying past and creating a wake. Several people on board whooped and hollered, looking as if the group had had a few too many. The red boat streaked past, but it suddenly reminded him of something else he needed to discuss with the detective.

"Casey."

"It's me again, Sam. Did anyone ever check out that boat slip at Dinner Key Marina? The red boat, the one I was supposed to load up with the ransom?"

"Jeez, Sam, we kind of forgot about it in all of this. We got the kidnappers and their accomplices, and we never thought about that boat."

"It's probably nothing, but I think you should send someone out to check on it."

"We'll do that. Thanks." He paused a moment, then asked, "Say, by any chance would you want to work for the Miami PD as a detective?"

Sam laughed and shook his head. "Thanks, but no. As soon as Mike and Fi are back up and around, we'll be working together again."

"At least this would be legal, on the up and up."

"Who says what we do is illegal? It's just covert."

"Hmmph. Well, if you change your mind, let me know, Sam. Thanks."

"Yeah, don't count on it. No offense, Casey."

After Sam got off the phone with Casey, he changed and met Elsa in the living room. He drove them to a nice, unpretentious little restaurant near the beach where they ate a late afternoon meal. As they finished, he noticed a squad car parked near the marina, and another passed and parked in the lot close to the first car.

"Sam?"

"Yes, honey?"

She tapped his hand, and he tore his gaze away from the scene to look at her. "What are you so intent upon over there?"

"Something's going on. A bunch of cops are over there." He picked up the check, glanced at it, and absently put down enough to cover the bill and the tip. "Are you done?"

"Yes."

"Good. Come on, let's go." He stood, grabbed her hand, and hurried them over to the marina. Normally he wouldn't have bothered, but when he saw Casey get out of his vehicle, he knew this was related to Elsa's kidnapping. "Casey!"

Detective Casey turned at the sound of Sam's voice. As the couple neared, the look of concern on his face deepened. "Sam, you shouldn't be here."

"I knew it, this has something to do with Elsa's kidnapping, doesn't it?"

Casey turned his attention to her a moment. "It's nice to see you looking better, Ms. Winchester."

"Thank you."

Sam realized that she had no idea who this man was. "Elsa, honey, this is Detective Casey. He and I worked together trying to find you."

"I see. It's a pleasure to meet you." She shook his hand. "And now, why are you here? How does the marina have anything to do with me?"

"I thought the getaway boat was at Dinner Key," Sam said as his eyes drifted to the police presence on the dock heading toward a slip where a red boat was moored.

"It was, but after this morning, someone moved it." At the sight of Sam's shocked expression, he added, "We got a tip that there were several people on the boat, two men and a woman. They got in, the boat took off, and it was found here."

"What happened to the people on it?"

"That we don't know yet. We're hoping they're still on board."

The three watched from land as the police descended upon the boat and boarded with shouts. It soon became apparent that it was unoccupied. One more sweep confirmed it, and most of the officers left. Four cops stood as guards in case the occupants returned.

"Nothing. Where..." Sam muttered and pulled out his phone. "Jesse, where are you?"

"I'm at the hospital. I've been here ever since I last saw you guys. What's up?"

"I hope you're armed, because I've got a feeling this isn't over yet."

Jesse scoffed. "Everything's all quiet here. What are you talking about?"

Sam quickly explained the red boat and it being empty, and he told him about the occupants. "I'll have the cops take Elsa home, but I'll be there in a few minutes. Hopefully these guys don't show up before I get there."

"I'll talk to the police we have here and get them to coordinate with hospital security. We probably don't have much time."

"Probably not. Be careful, Jesse."

"You too, Sam." Jesse ended the call.

Sam put his phone away, grabbed Elsa's arms and said, "You're going home right now. No, don't argue, okay? I'm going to the hospital..."

He was interrupted by a shout and they looked toward the boat. Hands were raised in the air, and even from such a distance, he recognized Colleen.

"Where was she," Elsa asked.

"I don't know." He got back on his phone and called Jesse. "Jesse, it's me again. They just found Colleen on the boat. She must have been hiding pretty good. I'll try to get there as soon as I can."

"Don't worry, man, we've got backup here. Lots of it."

"Okay." He still didn't feel right about leaving his friends in danger. He and Elsa stood near the detective's car and waited for the officers to bring Colleen to the cluster of police cruisers.

Her hair blew free in the wind and covered her face. She kept snapping her head trying to get it out of the way, but it wouldn't budge. She stopped, said something, and one of the officers moved the hair out of her face as the group continued walking toward the cars. Her eyes came up and met Elsa's. Seeing her former employer, the one she'd been loyal to for so long, was her undoing. She burst into tears.

"I'm sorry, Ms. Winchester. I'm so sorry." She repeated the apology as the police led her to a squad car.

Elsa stood with arms crossed, weight on one hip, and silent. Sam hadn't seen her look so stern before, not even when she was ready to reproach one of her employees for making a serious mistake. He returned his attention to Colleen. The officers turned her toward a vehicle and put her in the back seat. She sniffled and the officer closed the door on her.

"I want to know why she did this, Sam. I want to talk to her."

More like rip into her. Aloud, he said, "They're not going to let you talk to her, Elsa. The police will find out her motives, and they'll let us know."

"I want to hear it from her own lips. I can't believe she betrayed me, and maybe hearing it straight from her will help me cope."

Sam put his arm around her shoulder and led her toward one of the other cruisers. "Maybe later. Right now, I need you to go home, and I have to meet Jesse at the hospital."

She turned to face him, looked deeply into his eyes, and whispered, "Be careful, Sam. Don't leave me alone."

"I won't. I promise, I'll be back."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

Jesse waited after Sam's second phone call, wondering when he would arrive. Even more importantly, hoping that whoever wanted Mike and Fi dead didn't show up first. The hospital security team was alerted and watched the entrances. Employees and visitors coming and going were checked for weapons. The two officers at the ICU entrance were on alert, and two more were added for extra protection inside, one at Michael's door and one at Fiona's. Michael was awake and agitated.

"Jesse, do you have an extra gun on you? I can use it."

"No, Mike. You need to just lay there and rest. We've got everything covered. Sam is on the way."

"You can still use me," Michael protested. "If I could just get out of this bed and into a wheelchair..." He pushed the covers aside and put a leg over the rail.

Jesse pushed his leg back onto the mattress. "No way! You're staying put." Jesse heard voices and poked his head out of the room to see Sam coming down the short hall toward the room. "It's about time you got here!"

"Elsa was giving me a hassle. She wanted to talk to Colleen, but the cops wouldn't let her. So then she was all ticked and I had to get an officer to take her home." He grumbled. "I almost had to tie her up myself, she was so mad."

"Does she have security there?"

"Yeah. There are a couple units watching the house." He looked around and peered through the glass. "Looks like Mike is about to get out of that bed and take 'em on himself if they show up."

"You thought Elsa was bad! He's about ready to chew through the tubes and wires keeping him in bed." Jesse entered the room and Sam followed. "See, Mike? Sam's here now, you can relax."

"Hey, Mikey, you're looking pretty chipper for a guy who was bleeding out of his gut a couple days ago."

"Hello to you too, Sam," Michael replied as he shifted in bed. "I'm ready to go. I told Jesse..."

"Look, I don't care what you told Jesse." He jabbed Michael in the chest with his finger. "Your butt is staying in that bed. We'll take care of this. You need to get better so you can take care of Fi. Understand?"

Michael looked clueless as he said, "The doctor promised he would assign us to the same room if I behaved myself. I have no idea what he means by that."

Sam chuckled. "I know, that's asking a bit much of you, isn't it? Just lay there and shut up, and let us do the work." He grinned. "Just think of this as an exercise in patience. You can always improve on that."

"Really, Sam?" Michael gave him a look, but Sam wouldn't let him sway their decision.

"Really, Mike." He pushed his friend's shoulder into the mattress. "Stay."

They heard a popping sound. "Gun." Michael tried to sit up, but both Sam and Jesse held him down.

"We mean it," Jesse said. "Stay, Mike!"

The two left the room with guns at the ready. The popping sounds stopped as quickly as they began. Smoke filtered into the ICU, and two men they didn't recognize came forward with machine guns aimed their way. Sam and Jesse fired at them, carefully aiming to hit their marks. In the narrow hall there was little margin for error. If either of them missed, the enemy could take them down one after another. There was nowhere to seek cover.

Sam's bullet ripped into the bullet proof vest one of the attackers wore. Jesse aimed a little higher on his guy and took him down with a shot to the head. The one man still standing shot back, glass shattered behind Sam, and a second round from Sam's gun hit him in the neck. He collapsed to the floor, his carotid bleeding out.

The smoke hung thick in the confined space. Jesse moved closer to Sam. "Hey, you okay?"

"Yeah," Sam replied, breathing heavily. "That was too close."

"Check this out. You almost got hit." Jesse pulled at the tear on Sam's shoulder created by a bullet. "It's your lucky day, man."

"Lucky for us, not so much for them." Sam looked down at the two bodies on the floor. Medical personnel swarmed around them, but it was too late for either of the shooters. "You recognize those guys?" A beeping sound got their attention, and they looked around, their eyes stopping on a shaky Michael standing behind them. The only thing holding him up besides his unsteady legs was the IV pole. "Mikey! Get back to bed!" He and Jesse took hold of him and dragged him back to his room.

Nurses squeezed past the people in the hall and hooked him up to the monitors, scolding him the entire time. Sam and Jesse wisely stayed out of their way. Instead, they went to Fiona's side to see how she fared through all of the excitement.

"Looks like she slept right through it," Jesse remarked.

Sam cracked, "Yeah, too bad Mike couldn't have been a good little patient and done the same."

When they saw the nurses leave Michael's room and the bodies were being hauled to the morgue, the two went back to his bedside.

"Is... is Fi okay?"

With a look of irritation, Sam said, "She came out of this just fine, Mike. You, on the other hand, probably messed something up."

"I'm fine, Sam. Really." He let out a deep sigh and covered his eyes with his forearm. "I know who those guys were."

Sam asked, "Really? Who were they?"

"A couple of MI6 agents," Michael replied. "Ex-MI6, that is."

Sam and Jesse's eyes bugged as they stared at Michael. "Mike, please tell me you were kidding."

"I wish I was." He let out a breath. "The rumor was that they went rogue. I guess now we have the proof."

"If they were working with Ferguson and his bunch, that's pretty rogue," Sam said.

"Why doesn't that surprise me," Jesse muttered. "So they decided that while they were going to rip off twenty million dollars, they might as well take out you guys to help Ferguson settle a score."

"Scorched earth policy. A favorite of terrorists the world over," Sam cracked.

Casey poked his head into the room. "Looks like I missed the party, huh? I heard you two were like commandos, just took 'em right down with a couple of pistols."

"I don't think they were quite expecting any resistance out there, and it caught them off guard enough for us to nail them in here," Sam answered.

"Sam, who's this guy?"

"Mike, this is Detective Casey. He was heading the team to recover Elsa."

"You got her? She's safe?"

Jesse stared at him. "I told you that earlier, Mike, when I got here."

"Okay, that's it, you need more rest. Excuse me a second." Sam walked out of the room, past the orderly cleaning up the mess on the floor, and approached the nurses' station. Nurse Gargantua sat at the desk studying something on the computer screen while an officer stood nearby writing up a report. "Hi."

Gargantua looked up at him with a scowl. "Yes?"

With his most charming Sam Axe smile, he said, "Look, I know we kind of got off on the wrong foot earlier, but, now I'm asking if you can give my friend something to make him sleep for awhile. He's all wound up, and he's just gonna get out of bed again if you don't sedate him. I know this guy."

She tapped a few keys and clicked the mouse. "Alright, I can give him something. I'll be right in." She turned away and got up to unlock a cabinet behind her. She pulled out a vial and a syringe and followed Sam to the room.

This time, he didn't need to ask because she held up the medication for him to see. Over Michael's loud protests, she injected the drug into his line.

"This is for your own good, Mike. Just relax."

"No, come on! I don't need that." He tried to struggle, but Sam held his arm down.

The nurse gave him a reassuring smile and said, "It's just a little something to help you relax, Mr. Westen. You're too keyed up right now."

"Sam, I'll get you for... this..."

"Wow, that stuff works fast," Jesse exclaimed.

The nurse patted Michael's arm. "Sleep well, Mr. Westen." She turned toward Jesse and Sam. "You might want to wait in the waiting area. Or you can go back in to see Ms. Glenanne. If you're lucky, she might wake up for you." A slight smile crossed her features. "She was getting more lucid this morning."

Sam asked, "How is she doing?"

"She's healing quickly. In another few days, maybe she can be moved to a regular room. The doctor is making arrangements for the two to be put together. It's unusual, but not uncommon. Obviously it would be better for their healing if they can see each other." Her all-business face softened as she spoke. "Contrary to what you might think, I do care." Then she turned and headed back to her station.

"Hmm, how about that. Guess you can't always judge somebody on first impressions," Jesse observed.

"No doubt. Too bad that sometimes that's all we've got to work on, and if we guess wrong, we can die."

"Not today, my friend. Not today."

Michael and Fiona spent two weeks in the hospital, and when they were released, Maddie insisted that they stay with her until they were strong enough to take care of themselves. After a few days at Maddie's, Michael was restless. He sensed Fiona was feeling the same way. He sat in the back yard in the shade, but there were a hundred other places that he would have rather been. Fiona was inside playing cards with Maddie and her friends. That was definitely not one of those places he preferred to be.

He heard car doors slam and two figures approached. "Hey, Sam. Elsa. How are you two?" He noticed that Elsa wore shorts and a shirt not unlike something that Sam would wear. "You two look like you're off to someplace tropical."

"We sure are. We're going to the Keys for a few days, taking the yacht, just to get away for awhile." She glanced up at Sam, grinned at him, and she returned her attention to Michael as she said, "We'd really like you and Fiona to accompany us."

He squinted up at them and replied. "I'd have to talk to Fi."

"Yes." She paused, and a little smirk appeared on her lips. "I understand that you two have already applied for your marriage license."

Michael's eyes narrowed, realizing that Elsa had something up her short sleeve. "Yes, so?"

Sam reached into his back pocket and pulled out an official looking paper. Michael recognized what it was. "We just picked ours up at the courthouse. How about it, Mikey? We go down to the Keys, have an intimate little double ceremony, and make everything legal?"

"You're serious, aren't you." His eyes moved from Sam to Elsa and back.

Sam replied, "Your Ma's all for it. She said she and Jesse would come along. Evan said he'd make it, too."

Michael was speechless. When he and Fiona talked about wedding plans, he told her that he really didn't care what they did. He certainly never thought about it being a double ceremony with his best friend and his fiancee. He wasn't even aware that they were engaged! "Sam, when did you two get..."

"Right after Jesse and I took out those guys who tried to kill you and Fi in the ICU. I got home and Elsa was so freaked out, she proposed to me right there. I said 'Yes', but you know what? Just once, I'd like to be able to do the proposing myself."

"Well, if you and Elsa get married..."

"I know." Sam grinned and put his arm around Elsa. "That's why I came up with this idea to make up for it. So, what do you say, Mikey?"

"I'll have to talk to Fi, you know that."

"I'll be right back," Elsa said with a smile. She broke away from Sam and hurried into Maddie's house. A couple of minutes later, the two men heard excited shrieking.

"Uh oh," Michael muttered. He got up, and he and Sam went inside to see what the fuss was about.

The two found the ladies excited and talking, their voices a mash up of chatter that sounded like a bunch of hens. At the sight of the two men, they halted and stared. Maddie grinned, sprung from her chair, and met them in the kitchen door, giving them both hugs. "Oh, I'm so excited for you two! This is going to be the best wedding ever!"

"It is," Michael asked. He looked past all the excited faces toward Fiona. She sat at the end of the table and looked up at him with a demure expression on her face. Then she stood, walked slowly to him, and carefully wrapped her arms around him, being mindful of her sore chest.

"Michael."

"Fi, is this what you want?"

"It'll be wonderful," she replied with a grin. "I can hardly wait to do it!"

"Well, I guess we're going to the Keys then," Michael said with a smile.

The sun set in the west and gentle waves crashed on the beach. Nearby, on the patio of a small seafood restaurant in Key West, two newly married couples gathered with their guests. Michael and Fiona sat in their chairs, his arm around the back of hers, while they fed each other shrimp and scallops. Madeline watched from the opposite side of the table, the grin on her face so wide, it threatened to split her in two. Sam and Elsa sat back in their chairs that were pressed so close together they touched. When they weren't eating, their eyes locked on each other and they kissed. Jesse and Evan sat between Elsa and Maddie, enjoying the food and the view beyond the married couples.

"Hey Jesse, check her out," Evan spoke so only Jesse could hear as his eye caught a beauty in a bikini walking toward the sunset. "She'd be great for you, man."

"I kind of like her friend," Jesse answered. He glanced at the lovebirds, then at Evan. "Think they'd miss us?"

"Nah."

"Alright. Maddie, we'll see you later. If you don't mind, we're gonna meet some, um..."

Maddie laughed and waved them off. "You go on and have fun, boys."

Jesse and Evan ran for the beach and caught up to the women. She watched them introduce themselves, and she smiled when their new friends let the two men walk with them. She sighed. Now, if only she was so lucky.

"Michael? Michael?"

"Huh? Yeah, Ma?" He broke away from Fiona and took a sip of his drink. "Sorry, we kind of got caught up there."

"No, that's alright. This is your day, honey. I'm going to go back to the yacht and go to bed. It's been a long day, and I'm tired."

"Are you sure, Madeline? Are you okay?" Fiona asked with concern.

"I'm fine, sweetie." She smiled, so pleased to have Fiona as her daughter-in-law at last. "You two have fun. And you too, Sam, Elsa. Congratulations!"

"Thanks, Maddie. And thanks for being there for us today. All of us." He snuck a quick look at the other couple and smiled.

"Have a good night, Mrs. Westen. If you need anything, just let Lawrence know."

"Thank you, Elsa. I will." Lawrence, Elsa's new butler, whom Sam himself checked over with a fine security sweep, was about her age, polished, and quite handsome. He seemed to enjoy taking care of her on the trip to the Keys. Perhaps he wouldn't mind a little company as payback for his attentiveness.

Eventually, Michael and Fiona left the table to dance to the sweet sounds of a small live band on the far side of the patio. Sam and Elsa took care of the bill, and they went for a walk along the streets to watch the sun go down and see the streetlights and festive strings of lights come to life on the houses and businesses. It was a beautiful night, comfortable for walking, and few bugs unlike during the summer.

The street ended at the beach, and they found themselves alone. It was nearly dark, but they ventured out onto the sand anyway. Elsa sat down and pulled Sam with her. Their lips met, molded to each other, and the kiss deepened as he held her in place. Her hands traveled up his shirt front and she sighed when they parted.

"This day couldn't have been any better," she spoke on a breath. "When I was held captive, I dreamed of this day. But I was scared. I was afraid that they would kill me and I would never see you again, or kiss you..." She kissed him. "Or love you. Ever... again." Her kisses and her touch worked together to weaken him, and he fell back onto the sand, his arms taking her down with him. Their bodies entwined, and they held each other tight. "I kept thinking about dying and leaving you behind, and it just broke my heart."

"You don't have to worry now. We're together now, forever." He kissed the tracks of tears running down her cheeks.

"I worry that some day something will happen and you'll leave me."

"Oh no, no, I'd never leave you, pumpkin."

"That's what Ethan said, but then he got sick, and he died and left me and Evan alone."

"Shh, don't think about that. Just focus on the fact that I love you." His lips pressed to the pulse point in her neck as he rolled her to her back.

"You can't control everything, Sam. Someone might hurt you, or kill you, and then..."

"Anything can happen to either one of us at any time." He spoke in a near whisper as he covered her protectively with his body. "We could both be killed in some tragic accident. Let's not think about those we leave behind. Let's live in the here and now, love in the here and now, and let tomorrow take care of itself."

Elsa's satisfied sigh carried on the wind as Sam made love to her on the beach. He was right. There was so much to live for, and an unmeasured time in which to do it. As she lost herself in him, she resolved to never forget what he taught her.

_We live, we love,_

_Forgive and never give up._

_'Cuz the days we are given are gifts from above_

_And today we remember to live and to love._

_From the song, "We Live" by Superchic[k]_


End file.
